TOKYO, December 27. /TASS/. Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong Un has called the outgoing year of 2023 a critical turning point in his country’s development in terms of strengthening and demonstrating its power projection capabilities.

"Dear Comrade Kim Jong Un presented a report on the policy of the party and state in 2023. The report detailed the indicators of the development of the national economy as a whole, which clearly confirmed the vigorous and accelerated progress of the comprehensive development of socialist construction, and highlighted the proud achievements in the fields of culture, science, education, health and sports. The report praised the new changes and progress made in the fields of politics, defense and diplomacy," the North Korean Central News Agency reported following an expanded ninth plenary meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea.

In his report, Kim described 2023 as "a year of a major turning point, a year of great change in the truest sense of the word, which has left a great mark on the glorious path of the development of the country in terms of strengthening and demonstrating the power of the state."

The plenary meeting addressed a number of issues related to summing up the results of implementing the annual budgetary plan for the current year and the draft budget for the next year, as well as an overview of the political and party results for the year.