North Korea's party congress ends with vows to strive for unity

Pyongyang: The 8th congress of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) of North Korea concluded here on Tuesday, the country's official media outlet reported on Wednesday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the re-elected general secretary of the WPK, concluded the congress with a speech, the official Korean Central News Agency (KNCA) reported.

In his speech, Kim clarified the main idea and spirit of the congress and stressed the need for the whole party to deeply cherish and uphold the ideas of "believing in people as in Heaven", "single-minded unity" and "self-reliance", Xinhua news agency reported citing the KCNA.

Kim said the party's eighth congress "brought up the immediate plan of struggle for opening up a period of fresh upsurge, a period of great changes in the revolution and construction" and important issues arising from the party's development, said the report.

The congress unanimously adopted the resolution to thoroughly carry out the tasks set forth in the report on the work of the 7th Central Committee of the WPK, it said.

The eight-day congress put forth a new five-year economic development plan and its new policy on military affairs and foreign relations, according to the report.