EXPERT COMMENT
US President Trump and South Korea’s President Lee want to revive dialogue with North Korea. But an emboldened Kim Jong Un will want something in return.
Kim Jong Un’s New Year’s address on 31 December revealed few details of North Korea’s policy priorities for 2026. Unusually, neither South Korea nor the United States featured in the speech. Instead, the North Korean Supreme Leader focused on the importance of domestic patriotism and loyalty, and the need to further economic development.
With the Ninth Party Congress of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea expected to take place early this year, Kim will likely wait until then to outline his country’s domestic and foreign policy objectives in greater detail.
What is clear, however, is that 2026 will see a growing focus on two key questions.
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