North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said the party’s political bureau met under Kim’s supervision and decided the congress would be held in late February. Relations derailed in 2019 after his second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump due to disagreements over sanctions against his nuclear weapons program. Kim has rejected Trump’s overtures for dialogue since the U.S. president began his second term in January 2025. Kim insists Washington abandon demands for the North to surrender its nuclear weapons as a precondition for future talks. Kim also has pursued closer ties with China, traditionally the North’s primary ally and economic lifeline.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 08, 2026 01:30 UTC