North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited the public and state security ministries and judicial bodies to mark their 80th founding anniversaries. He emphasized their role in defending the North's socialist system. The visits appear to signal the regime's intent to tighten social control.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of State Security, the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office on November 18, 2025, to commemorate their 80th founding anniversaries, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). During the visit to the state security ministry, Kim was greeted by Minister Ri Chang-dae and other senior officials, extending "warm military greetings" to personnel for following "the road of patriotism and loyalty" in defending the party and state.
Kim stated that it was thanks to the "feats and brilliant merits" of security officers that the ruling party has achieved "legendary transformations and victories against hostile forces," expressing confidence that they will continue to fulfill their responsibilities. The state security ministry, an intelligence organ responsible for surveilling and detecting dissidents through extensive networks, was described by KCNA as a "political defender" of the ruling party. This marks Kim's first visit to the ministry since 2012, shortly after taking office, accompanied by Party Secretary Jo Yong-won, Party Director Kim Hyong-sik, and Kang Yun-sok, vice chairman of the parliamentary standing committee.
In 2009, Kim visited the ministry as heir to his father Kim Jong-il, with an inscription on a stone monument at the site noting multiple prior visits, as seen in released photos. At the public security ministry, he emphasized its mission to "guarantee by law and arms the activities of the (ruling) party and the government who devote all their energies to defending Korean-style socialist system and promoting the people's wellbeing." In visits to the Supreme Court and Supreme Public Prosecutors Office, he expressed expectations that officials would strengthen the socialist legal system by thoroughly applying party ideas.
These back-to-back visits to organs responsible for social surveillance and law enforcement suggest the regime's intention to tighten its grip on social control.
