The festival is an international meeting dynamically encouraging the world progressive people's struggle for adding shine to the revolutionary careers and exploits of President Kim Il Sung and leader Kim Jong Il, holding in high esteem respected Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un as the sun of the 21st century and building a just, peaceful and fresh world.

A meeting of greeting the sun took place at the top of Mt. Paektu on Monday.

Present at the meeting were Kim Ki Nam, vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea who is honorary chairman of the International Preparatory Committee for Gathering 2017-Praise to the Great Persons of Mt Paektu, the vice-chairpersons of the Korean Preparatory Committee for Gathering 2017-Praise to the Great Persons of Mt Paektu, Peter Woods, ambassador of the United Cities and Local Governments-Asia Pacific, Damian Ogbonna, national chairman of the People's Progressive Party of Nigeria, Fumihiro Himori, chairman of the Japan Committee for the Independent and Peaceful Reunification of Korea, Victor Petrov, chairman of the Russian Association for Friendship and Cultural Cooperation with the DPRK, Anders Kristensen, chairman of the Denmark-DPRK Friendship Association, who are co-chairpersons of the International Preparatory Committee for Gathering 2017-Praise to the Great Persons of Mt Paektu, delegations and delegates of various countries, regions and international democratic organizations, personages of various circles and staff members of foreign embassies in Pyongyang.

Neil Fitzgerald, co-chairman of the Oceania Regional Preparatory Committee for Gathering 2017-Praise to the Great Persons of Mt Paektu, read out the 2017 Paektusan declaration at the meeting.

The declaration praised the exploits of Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Un.

It said:

1. The great HE Kim Il Sung and HE Kim Jong Il are the sun of humankind alive with the era of independence.

We will laud HE Kim Il Sung and HE Kim Jong Il who made immortal contributions to accomplishing the global cause of independence as the sun of Juche and Songun forever and further develop the festival into the political and cultural one common to humankind to add shine to the great idea and exploits of the peerlessly great men.

2. Respected HE Kim Jong Un is the great sun of the 21st century who is leading the global cause of independence to brilliant victory.

We are convinced that thanks to HE Kim Jong Un who is holding the helm of world politics, the 21st century will be glorified as the great century of Kim Jong Un in which domination, subordination, aggression and interference are eradicated and sovereignty and equality of all countries ensured and the genuine international justice realized.

3. The great Paektusan nation is the banner of victory dynamically accelerating the global independence with the might of justice and truth.

We will more dynamically conduct activities for support to the great Paektusan nation, fortress of independence against imperialism and bulwark of socialism, which is dynamically advancing along the road of independence, Songun and socialism while vigorously smashing all sorts of challenges in history.

The future of humankind is rosy and bright and the historic cause of building a new independent world will be certainly accomplished thanks to the great sun rising in high spirit of Mt. Paektu.

After the declaration was read out, Abdoulaye Diallo, chairman of the Guinean Society for the Study of the Juche Literary Idea who is vice-chairman of the Guinean Preparatory Committee for Gathering 2017-Praise to the Great Persons of Mt Paektu, and Argentinean writer Jorge Luis Ubertali recited their impromptu poems praising the peerlessly great persons.

The participants in the meeting signed the placard that read the letters "Glory to the powerful Paektusan nation!", with full conviction that the future of mankind is bright and rosy and the global cause of independence will be certainly accomplished thanks to Kim Jong Un.

The participants marched to the tune of song "We Will Go to Mt Paektu" holding such placards as "Long live General Kim Jong Un, the sun of the 21st century" and festive flags.