The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un in his speech extended warm greetings to the cadres of the Party and government, who are making ceaseless efforts to repay the trust of the great people with dedication to the heavy duties entrusted by them, and to all the people and service personnel, who are proudly celebrating the national day with precious pride of devoting their pure and sincere patriotic loyalty and indomitable efforts to the dynamic creation struggle for prosperity, on the occasion of the founding anniversary of the DPRK.

He also extended his warm greetings to all overseas Koreans, including the patriotic compatriots of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan who invariably take the road of patriotism with warm love for their socialist homeland, and expressed his thanks to the peoples and friends of all friendly countries who recognize and support the sovereignty and just cause of the DPRK.

And he paid high tribute to the revolutionary forerunners, patriotic martyrs and persons of merits of the preceding generations, who devoted their precious lives and feats to the foundation and development of the DPRK and the victorious advance of the socialist cause and created excellent traditions and examples to be followed by posterity.

He said as follows:

Whenever we see with pride our national flags fluttering everywhere on this land invariably and more brilliantly and greet our national day every year, we naturally realize keenly that no country in the world is as great, wonderful and glorious as our Republic.

When the DPRK was beating back the aggression of the imperialist allied forces which were incomparably superior in number, to say nothing of the time when our people were building a genuine people’s country free from the vicious colonial rule, miracles unheard-of in other parts of the world were performed in the DPRK, and the historic course of Chollima Korea, which had made leaps forward to build a socialist nation on the ruins, and of Juche Korea was always full of miracles, too.

We take greater pride in the fact that such honorable course followed by our state was not confined to the past history of the preceding generations.

Today's reality is also an extension of those miracles.

We are evidently making steady advance.

During the period when one generation was replaced completely by another, our Party and people have defended and developed the socialist cause without any slightest vacillation or deviation despite countless severe challenges and trials - this is the most faithful and perfect continuity of the cause of Kimilsungism and a great political victory and historic miracle that has proved in practice the truth, eternal viability and vitality of the great Juche idea and its entity - socialism of our style.

This clearly showed the whole world the truth of Juche and the immutable truth of invincibility that socialism, in which the people became its masters and remain faithful to their responsibility and role as masters, neither get ruined nor vacillate but emerge victorious and develop forever, despite the vicious moves of the imperialist reactionary forces and the shifts in generation within the revolutionary ranks.

This year, too, our Party and government have organized and launched a gigantic undertaking which serves as a watershed in the course of the current advance for making epoch-making development of our cause of socialism.

As you all know, under the situation in which the tasks of the fourth year of the Five-Year Plan, decided and assigned by the Eighth Party Congress, are being carried out, we have added to the domain of our struggle and assumed such new intermediate- and long-range task as regional development. This is an expression of our firm trust and confidence in our strength, our Party Central Committee's revolutionary viewpoint and attitude to fulfill the responsibility and duty it has assumed for the times and history and, at the same time, a manifestation of its steadfast spirit of serving the people.

We are full of confidence to successfully brave such challenging trials and historical stages in the course of the advancing revolutionary cause.

This revolutionary decision we made recently is an important strategic decision to give full play to the advantages of socialism in actuality through the promotion of the well-being of the people throughout the country, thus further consolidating the foundations of our system and accelerating the overall state development.

As the country's economy still is not in conditions smooth enough to exert any reserve power, to provide cities and counties across the country with the basic material and technical foundations strong enough for their diversified and independent development in the next ten years would have been unthinkable in the past.

But in order to live up to the great expectations and trust of the people, the Party and the government worked out scientific strategies and realistic implementation plans, believing in the unconditional and absolute loyalty of our army and its strong fighting efficiency, and the entities of major regional-industry factories in 20 cities and counties are becoming clear as expected.

Not content with this, the Party and the Government initiated an additional plan and are making preparations for putting it into thoroughgoing practice in order to get rid of the backwardness of regions as quickly as possible.

I have already stressed to regard the regional development as the top-priority revolutionary task of the Party and the government, viewing it as a serious political issue.

As it is the work impossible to carry out for over 70 years and nearly 80 years, some would surely take sceptical attitude and stand towards the regional development plan.

But availing myself of this opportunity, I reaffirm on behalf of the Party and government.

Is there a guarantee of success in implementing our regional development policy? Is it possible? It is possible.

After ten years we will answer this question with real changes.

It is our successes that we steadily push forward with the implementation of the goals for readjustment and reinforcement to be attained this year, while keeping the overall growth trend of the national economy and fulfilling without fail monthly and quarterly production plans in various sectors of the national economy, including key industries, despite manifold difficulties and obstacles.

This year we have provided conditions for making further improved and changed results in light industry, urban management and other sectors directly linked with the stabilization of the people’s livelihood. The overall crops have so far been well and it is possible to expect fair good harvests.

We can appreciate that a series of progress have been made in reinforcing the national functions and capabilities for coping with any crisis brought by natural disasters.

Severe floods hit some areas of North Phyongan Province along the lower River Amnok and of Jagang and Ryanggang provinces in late July, which hindered the state work and required the mobilization of huge forces for rehabilitation, but the Party and the government take it as an opportunity for making a new detailed survey of the shortcomings and discontinuities in coping with natural disasters and take prospective and irreversible measures for preventing them in the future. It can also be said as important progress.

Despite this, we have achieved great epochal results by vigorously promoting the radical development of the defence capabilities to secure a reliable environment for security of the country and create conditions favourable to socialist construction.

This year, especially in some recent months, we secured wonderful military strength by making important achievements in national defence studies and production.

When we comprehensively assess the present situation of all these state affairs, we can analyze that almost all the major extra political tasks set forth by the Party Central Committee in planning and arranging this year's work are progressing successfully, correctly and satisfactorily.

Urgent efforts should be made to further enrich and boost the successes achieved this year by making the most effective use of the remaining months, he said, and continued:

The most important thing for doing so is to further raise and expand the boundless patriotism and loyalty of all the Party members, working people and service personnel of the People's Army and lead them to successful fruition.

This is just the important and essential revolutionary duty facing the leading officials of our Party and Government.

We should complete the economic work for this year in a responsible manner to make fresh progress in the efforts for the comprehensive national rejuvenation and further improve the material and cultural life of the people.

So far, almost all the sectors of the national economy which are in charge of the 12 major goals have carried out their quotas without fail. The present fighting atmosphere and spirits are very good.

In order to maintain this trend in a sustainable way, it is necessary for all the sectors and units of the national economy to actively apply skilful operations and innovative methods of giving full play to the working people's enthusiasm for production and creativity and improving their technical skill levels.

And by maintaining and repairing the existing equipment regularly, all the production sectors should prevent equipment accidents, raise the rate of operation to the maximum and ensure the quantitative and qualitative level of the products by constantly updating the production processes and equipment.

He referred to the tasks for fully ensuring stable production activities of major sectors of the national economy.

To further increase the national productivity by unconditionally finishing by the appointed time the plans of the key industries for adjustment and reinforcement to be fulfilled this year, the Cabinet and the state economic guidance organs should learn about the implementation of all the state measures and take a decisive measure at an early date by finding out other lacking problems and elements.

He went on:

Since the development of the state and social life as well as the economy is expressed as entities of structures, the construction sector must carry out this year’s plan without fail with the main emphasis on ensuring the quality thoroughly.

We should thoroughly ensure the quality of the buildings directly related to the actual life of the people, including the 10 000 flats of the third stage in the Hwasong area and rural houses and, at the same time, raise the level of architectural design to the world level and make a remarkable change in the work for standardizing and modernizing construction equipment and tools.

The new hostels in Samjiyon City should be turned into hotels and more places developed as tourist resorts to make Samjiyon a world-class mountain tourist resort, he said, calling for steadily pushing forward with the projects for perfectly building the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist area so as to run it from the next year.

He underscored the need to direct efforts to building a firm guarantee for actively enhancing the control and command of the economy as a whole by decisively updating the economic means and methods for directing and managing the national economy in keeping with the development of the times and the requirements of the reality, and underlined the need for the state to attach importance to smooth and comfortable circulation of products, to give priority to creating favorable conditions and environment for production and management activities based on the relative independence of enterprises and to take effective measures for continuously raising the real income of the working people.

Saying that to carry out the grain production plan is not just a matter confined to the agricultural sector, but a political work to guarantee the victorious advance of socialism, he indicated the clear ways for successfully finishing this year's farming and making good preparations for next year's farming.

He analyzed and appreciated the work for recovering from flood damage to date and said:

Even though the period is short and there are so many reconstruction projects, the quality of structures should never be reduced.

Now that enough reconstruction forces have been mobilized and the enthusiasm of the soldier-builders and shock brigade members is great, whether the projects are completed in time or not depends on how the building materials, equipment and vehicles are supplied.

The Cabinet, the State Planning Commission, the Ministry of Railways and other ministries and national agencies should provide that steel, cement, fuel, timber, glass and other building materials and equipment at the fixed date according to plan, and take decisive measures to solve the acute transport problems so as to smoothly promote the projects.

We must finish the recovery from flood damage in a qualitative way within the fixed period and thus ensure a normal and stable life of the people in the flood-hit areas and put the damaged sectors of the national economy on their track so as to successfully complete the struggle with nature.

He said that the prerequisite task the Party and the government should specially place importance on and push ahead with is the unconditional and perfect implementation of the regional development policy in the new era.

He continued:

As I have already said, there is no more urgent revolutionary task than this in terms of the fundamental principle of activities of our Party and state that are orienting all the works of revolution and construction to firmly defending and ensuring the rights and interests of the people and constantly expanding the policy for the welfare of the people, irrespective of conditions and circumstances and at the present moment when the epochal regional changes have become the most important task and indispensable requirement for the comprehensive development of socialism and for the comprehensive national rejuvenation.

We must not try to assess characteristics and advantages of the Korean-style socialist system through some new streets built in the capital city and the material and cultural standards of its citizens, and we must not think that the recent successes are great ones as they have been achieved in the face of the unprecedentedly severe manifold difficulties.

This opinion and viewpoint are harmful to the development of the revolution.

Like the principles of architectural engineering and structural mechanics, which high-rise and super-high-rise buildings need firm foundations, if the socialist system is to be consolidated under any circumstances, the foundation of the people’s mind for its advantages should be solid, and all the people should actively sympathize with it through their actual life, and the social system should be based on the desire of all the people to share their destiny with socialism to the last and defend it through generations.

He referred to the importance of the regional development policy on developing the cities, counties and rural areas, the regional bases and lowest units, in a substantial, material and planned way, which constitute the whole territory of the DPRK and support the state system of the DPRK, and continued:

Like this, regional development has arisen as a matter of faith in socialism, not a simple economic and business issue, and a very important and urgent matter directly linked with the future of our revolution. Therefore, I convened an enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau again, set forth the Regional Development 20×10 Policy and attached the more important political significance to its powerful implementation as soon as the discussion of the work ended at the plenary meeting earlier this year.

Some time ago, l indicated the new orientation towards accelerating the historic cause of regional rejuvenation by simultaneously building public health facilities, sci-tech dissemination bases and grain management facilities as well as regional-industry factories facilities in cities and counties.

As we rang the roar of artillery solemnly to implement the regional development policy in the new era, we should carry out the planned tasks without fail while steadily expanding the successes made so far and thus confidently open up the full-scale enforcement stage of the ten-year revolution for realizing our Party’s desire.

It is necessary to simultaneously produce the completed entities in twenty cities and counties without fail at the end of the year by putting spurs to the construction of regional-industry factories, which arises the primary task for implementing the Regional Development 20×10 Policy.

The officers and men of the units at all levels who were mobilized in regional construction should direct all their efforts to perfectly completing the construction of regional-industry factories at the highest quality level, staking the dignity of the Party and the honour of the People’s Army.

As the construction of regional-industry factories in 20 cities and counties has entered the demarcation of 90 percent so far, the units in charge of equipment manufacture and import should also push ahead with the work to perfectly carry out their tasks and supply equipment in time.

Light industry factories and relevant universities in the capital city, and provinces, cities and counties should make a positive contribution to implementing our Party’s policy on regional development by thoroughly and within the fixed date working out the plan for training technicians and skilled workers capable of managing and operating regional-industry factories to be built in a modern way.

Ministries, national agencies and relevant provinces, cities and counties should prepare and supply raw materials needed for normalizing production as soon as regional-industry factories are completed.

It is very important for each city and county to create their reserves in translating the Regional Development 20×10 Policy into reality and making it substantially contribute to improving the living standard of the regional people.

So, we took new measures to make a breakthrough in solving this problem by building the Sinpho City Offshore Farm as a model base for offshore cultivation and to revitalize its operation.

Referring to the importance and significance of the construction of three projects newly added to the Regional Development 20×10 Policy, he said that we are going to expand and build the centers for sci-tech learning, which had been already expected to be additional projects, into comprehensive bases for cultural life. And he underlined the need to building not only bases for sci-tech learning equipped with modern IT means but also multi-functional comprehensive cultural centers including trade networks and all sorts of service establishments with good hygienic environment in which inhabitants can watch films and lead a sports and cultural life in cities and counties and use the centers.

He went on:

As the comprehensive centre for cultural life is a new project which is the first conception in the history of regional construction, I will make sure that designs for architecture including layouts are properly made in consideration of the scale and characteristics according to topographic condition and population and a budget bill for construction is definitely drawn up on its basis.

If we spruce up 20 cities and counties every year like this, it may be that the differences between cities and rural areas that have lasted historically will be remarkably reduced and the living conditions of the regional people will become rich and civilized as good as the urban people.

Kim Jong Un stressed the need to continue to push ahead with the work for further consolidating the national defence capabilities as required by the present situation.

As the reckless expansion of the military bloc system led by the U.S. and its development into the character of a nuclear-based military bloc, the military security environment around the DPRK has come close to us as a grave threat.

Such actual threats will inevitably bring about more various threats in the future and, accordingly, such situational development requires us to take more important measures and make constant efforts to maintain and further boost military supremacy.

The obvious conclusion is that the nuclear force of the DPRK and the posture capable of properly using it for ensuring the state's right to security in any time should be more thoroughly perfected.

We are now perfectly carrying out the policy on building the nuclear armed forces on increasing the number of nuclear weapons by geometrical progression, and the nuclear combat forces of the Republic are being operated under the strict command and control system.

Our state is a responsible nuclear weapons state.

We are constantly exposed to a serious nuclear threat. Our nuclear weapons for defending ourselves do not pose a threat to anyone.

Forces, which call the nuclear armed force of the DPRK threatening, only reveal their admission that they have the hostile intention to attack the DPRK with nukes.

Under the different threats posed by the United States and its followers and under the security circumstances facing us, the possession of powerful military power is the duty and right to existence that our Party and Government should not miss even a moment and make no concession.

Strong power is just a genuine peace and an absolute guarantee for the development of our state.

It is the most important national affairs of the Party and the government and the first task of the revolution to constantly strengthen and develop our army' capability to fight a war and thus actively cope with the regional security environment and defend the sovereignty, security and interests of the state by dint of powerful strength.

The DPRK will steadily strengthen its nuclear force capable of fully coping with any threatening acts imposed by its nuclear-armed rival states and redouble its measures and efforts to make all the armed forces of the state including the nuclear force fully ready for combat.

Repeatedly stating, the DPRK's military muscle will develop in an accelerated and continued way thanks to our aspiration and steady efforts and we will not set a limit to its attainment.

He said that the success of this year's struggle for providing a sure guarantee for implementing the decisions of the Party congress entirely depends on the responsibility and role of the party organizations and their officials, the political staff of the relevant units.

Today our revolution expects that Party organizations and officials will work with devotion and work harder than ever before.

The organizations and officials of the whole Party should be well aware of the requirements of the revolution and their responsibilities and duties and bear deep in mind their mission and thus conduct energetic organizational and political work to carry out the tasks of this year’s struggle unconditionally and correctly.

First of all, they should examine in detail the political tasks assigned to their sectors and units and the implementation of the Party decisions adopted for their implementation, and take appropriate measures to ensure correct implementation.

And they should intensify the control and guidance for their implementation and reassignment and conduct the work in a three-dimensional way and at a lightning speed.

When all Party organizations and officials launch operation and guidance for unconditionally attaining this year's struggle goals in a sweeping and dynamic manner by giving full play to their organizing ability, leadership and executive faculty from the standpoint that they should be entirely responsible for the work of the fields and units under their charge, it is quite possible to bring about substantial results until the end of this year.

In particular, it is necessary to get rid of the wrong viewpoint and attitude of leaving the work for fulfilling this year's plans and goals entirely to the administrative officials and intensify the organization and control from the standpoint that Party committees take the full responsibility for it.

The fighting efficiency and activity of the Party organizations are gauged by their ability of inspiring mental power and wisdom of the masses.

Party organizations at all levels should launch a vigorous ideological offensive to give full play to the patriotic enthusiasm and creative ingenuity of the producer masses by displaying a high sense of responsibility and making redoubled efforts, thus making sure that every part of the country seethes with enthusiasm and the collective innovation movement gets brisk in every unit.

To this end, it is necessary to instill into the Party members and other working people the viewpoint that the policy tasks facing their sectors and units are realistic and feasible struggle targets, which were set on the basis of enough calculation into overall conditions and possibility of their implementation, and that they must carry them out without fail in any case and they can do so, thus providing them with confidence and courage.

We should concentrate information and motivation means and forces on the sites of vibrant struggle and launch a vigorous ideological offensive without interruption, so that the intention and mind of the masses are all oriented towards attaining the target of this year’s plan and the soaring enthusiasm for revolution and struggle never cools but steadily goes up at every workplace.

In successfully concluding this year’s struggle, it is very important to encourage the officials and Party members, who are the organizers and executors of the Party’s lines and policies, to give fuller play to their leadership, creativity and activity.

Party organizations should intensify their guidance over the officials' Party life so that the officials make redoubled efforts and work harder to carry out successfully and perfectly the struggle goals, set for their sectors and units, out of a single resolve to repay the Party’s trust with high work results.

The relevant departments of the WPK Central Committee and the Party organizations at all levels of ministries and national agencies in the government should supervise and actively encourage their leading cadres so that they are deeply conscious of their responsibilities, explore the ways to properly discharge their duties, as required by the Party policies, always in a keen sense of responsibility, and conduct operations and work in a meticulous and strenuous manner, fully aware of their heavy duty.

Party organizations should strengthen the organization and guidance of Party life among their members so that they find themselves earlier than others in the most difficult jobs, which others may hesitate to do, lead the masses in a revolutionary and positive manner and stand in the vanguard of the struggle for resolutely eliminating all obstacles hindering our advance in every worksite seething with the efforts for implementing the Party decisions.

It is needed to further enhance the responsibility and role of the officials of power organs at all levels, and of leading economic officials, in particular.

We have not much time left until the end of this year, in which we should confirm the success in attaining the goal of struggle set forth by the Eighth Party Congress.

It is just the leading economic officials who should work more responsibly during the time left, which can be said to be decisive of the implementation of the Five-Year Plan for the Development of the National Economy.

Officials in charge of economic affairs should waste no time but concentrate on fulfilling their duties, aware that they have only 110-odd days until the expiry of the deadline for their pledge to implement the decision of the Ninth Plenary Meeting of the Eighth Central Committee of the Party without fail.

Saying that all officials should conduct their work in a bold and innovative way with the spirit of ardently serving the country and the people and revolutionary optimism, he called for enhancing the function and role of law-enforcement organs in every way so as to make sure that the overall work of the state is conducted smoothly as required by the Party, the revolution, the people and the rapidly changing times. He went on:

As I mentioned earlier, this year our Party and government have designed and strongly propelled the gigantic and worthwhile undertakings for overall prosperity of the state and well-being of the people.

All these undertakings are not easy to carry out and we have not a few difficulties to overcome, but we must bring about remarkable results without fail with firm confidence and steadfast will, and thus glorify this year as a year of proud victory in the history of state development.

Let us all wage a more vigorous struggle with greater pride and confidence in our efforts for accomplishing the sacred cause for peace, prosperity and grandeur of our motherland and well-being of the people throughout the country.

I extend my warm best wishes to all citizens of this country once again and warmly congratulate them on the national day of the great motherland.