N. Korea crowns leader Kim Jong-un as party's general secretary

The election took place at the sixth-day session of the party's eighth congress in Pyongyang on Sunday, following the North's revision of party rules to reinstate the secretariat system that was scrapped in 2016, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"The 8th Congress ... unanimously adopted a decision on electing Kim Jong-un as general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea in reflection of the unanimous will and desire of all the delegates and other Party members, all the people and service personnel of the People's Army," the report said.

The general secretary title was previously held by Kim's late predecessors, his grandfather Kim Il-sung and father Kim Jong-il.

Since Kim took office following his father's death in late 2011, the North has called Kim Jong-il the "eternal general secretary" of the party and Kim Il-sung the "eternal president" of North Korea.

During an election that took place the same day, Kim's younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, was not included as an alternate member of the party's powerful political bureau.

Speculation has swirled that the younger Kim, previously an alternate member of the politburo, could be promoted to a higher position as she appeared to have undertaken a prominent role in inter-Korean affairs and other key issues.

Jo Yong-won, a senior party official who was often spotted accompanying the leader during his field trips last year, was promoted to a member of the presidium of the political bureau, a position held by only five people in the North including leader Kim.

Pak Pong-ju, a former member of the presidium, was removed from all party positions apparently due to his age.

North Korea's First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui was demoted to an alternate member of the party's central committee from a member amid an impasse in the North's nuclear negotiations with the United States.

The North Korean leader has held three meetings with US President Donald Trump, but denuclearization talks have made little progress since their no-deal summit in Hanoi in February 2019.

During an earlier session of the congress, Kim defined the US as the North's "foremost principal enemy" and vowed to bolster its nuclear arsenal, which experts see as aimed at pressuring the incoming Joe Biden administration.

Jang Kum-chol, head of the North's United Front Department that deals with inter-Korean affairs, also appears to have been replaced by Kim Yong-chol, as he was not included on the list of party department directors while Kim was on the list.

Kim Song-nam, first vice director handling relations with China, was promoted to director.

Experts say the North's leader is now expected to boost his new leadership style in full swing while inheriting the history and tradition of his predecessors.

"Yet diplomacy with the US and economic recovery remain the biggest challenges for North Korea, and without properly resolving these tasks, it will be difficult for Kim to secure his authority as the general secretary," Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, said.

North Korea has faced a triple whammy of the fallout of back-to-back typhoons in summer, a protracted border closure due to the coronavirus pandemic, and global sanctions on its economy.

KCNA said the congress was to continue with a seventh-day session on Monday.

The event appears to be coming to an end, but it is unclear exactly when the congress will close as the North has not made public the schedule. The previous congress in 2016 was held for four days. (Yonhap)