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Nazrin Abdul

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been re-elected secretary-general of the Workers' Party of Korea, extending his 15-year leadership of the country’s sole governing party, AzerNEWS reports.

The decision was announced Sunday on the fourth day of the Party Congress, a major political gathering held every five years, according to state news agency Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Delegates also elected new members to the Central Committee and approved amendments to party rules, though no details were disclosed.

Kim, who has led North Korea since the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in 2011, used the congress to review the party’s performance over the past five years and outline priorities for the next term.

In his opening address last week, Kim described the previous five years as a “proud period … in implementing the socialist cause of our own style,” while acknowledging difficulties stemming from international sanctions and what he called the “global public health crisis.”

“Today, our Party is faced with heavy and urgent historic tasks of boosting economic construction and the people’s standard of living and transforming all realms of state and social life as early as possible,” KCNA quoted him as saying.

He emphasized the need for a “more active and persistent struggle” to achieve economic growth and improve living standards, signaling that domestic development will remain central to the leadership’s agenda.

Among other senior officials addressing the congress was Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui.