North Korea will select delegates to its national assembly later this month, following a major gathering of its ruling party, state media reported on Wednesday.
Attention will be on whether leader Kim Jong Un will be named president, the country’s top state post, long held by founder and Kim’s late grandfather, Kim Il Sung.
The election of delegates to the rubber-stamp Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) is scheduled for 15 March, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing a decision by the parliamentary standing committee.
The vote follows the once-every-five-years congress of the ruling Workers’ Party, a summit that directs state policy across areas ranging from diplomacy to military planning.
Kim has repeatedly vowed to define South Korea as a “hostile” separate state and to enshrine the concept in law. He described Seoul’s latest peace initiatives as a “clumsy deceptive farce and a poor work".
The SPA is expected to incorporate this stance into the constitution once the election concludes.
The announcement comes amid speculation over whether US President Donald Trump will seek a meeting with Kim during planned visits to China in April.
As the party congress concluded on 25 February, Kim said North Korea could “get along” with the United States if it recognised Pyongyang’s nuclear status.
For decades, the United States has sought to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear programme, but summits, sanctions, and diplomatic pressure have had limited impact.
