Kim Jong Un, the Chairman of North Korea's State Affairs Commission, has directly overseen a large-scale military event, emphasizing the establishment of internal discipline and the enhancement of combat capabilities. Amid recent rumors of his death circulating on foreign social media, he continues to make public appearances to demonstrate his vitality.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim led the Third Company Commanders' Conference of the Korean People's Army held in Pyongyang from October 22 to 23.
In a speech themed 'Building a Strong Army in the New Era and the Duties of Company Commanders,' Kim outlined tasks aimed at strengthening the combat power and military capabilities of the companies.
He stated, "The overall direction for strengthening companies is to revamp their combat power and appearance to match the status and prestige of an elite revolutionary armed force," stressing that all companies in the military must be ideologically pure and militarily elite.
Kim further noted, "The fundamental spirit of the Third Company Commanders' Conference is to cultivate the strongest companies to build the strongest army and accelerate our style of military revolution."
He specifically instructed company commanders to ensure the ideological elite status of their companies and to continuously improve management and soldier life under strict military discipline. This reflects a commitment to strengthening ideological training and military discipline centered around the company, the basic combat unit of the military.
This event is particularly noteworthy given the recent spread of rumors regarding Kim's death. North Korea publicly showcased Kim's visit to an exhibition in the light industry sector on October 20, followed by reports of him leading this large military event.
The National Intelligence Service reported to the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee on October 23 that the rumors of Kim's death are false.
The conference was attended by senior military officials, including Park Jong-cheon, Vice Chairman of the Workers' Party Central Military Commission, Defense Minister Kim Song-ki, First Deputy Director of the General Political Bureau Yu Kwang-u, and Chief of the General Staff Ri Yong-gil, along with company commanders and commanders of various military agencies.
The agency assessed that this conference served as an opportunity to develop companies into "multi-functional units capable of independently and successfully carrying out any combat mission."
Following Kim's speech, Defense Minister Kim Song-ki presented a report, and there were screenings of videos featuring the practical experiences of company commanders, along with a ceremony to award exemplary company commanders with party and state honors.
Previous Company Commanders' Conferences were held in November 1991 and February 1999. Additionally, a fifth conference targeting company commanders and political instructors was held in March 2019, indicating that such events are relatively frequent.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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