North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a meeting of the politburo of the country’s ruling Workers Party, where economic projects including the chemical industry were discussed, Reuters reported Sunday, citing state news agency KCNA.
The two-day meeting comes at a time of economic uncertainty amid the global coronavirus pandemic that is putting additional pressure on the North’s economy, already battered by international sanctions aimed at stopping its nuclear program.
The meeting discussed “crucial issues arising in further developing the self-sufficient economy of the country and improving the standard of people’s living,” KCNA said.
The meeting repeatedly stressed that the chemical industry is “a major thrust front of the national economy,” it said.
“He stressed the need to give top priority to increasing the capacity for producing fertilizer,” KCNA said, citing Kim.
The North Korean leader’s attendance at the meeting is significant, given his recent lengthy absence from the public eye.
In April, it was reported that Kim is in grave danger after undergoing heart surgery. The report was denied by a South Korean official.
North Korean media subsequently published photos of Kim attending a ribbon cutting ceremony at a fertilizer factory.
Late last month, Kim hosted a military meeting to discuss new policies to bolster the country's nuclear capabilities.