N. Korea holds meetings to discuss follow-up measures for policy goals

North Korea has held Cabinet and provincial committee meetings to discuss follow-up measures to implement policy goals set forth during a recent key party meeting, state media reported Monday. The Cabinet and regional committees, including those in Pyongyang and across the country, held meetings from Friday to Sunday to discuss policy performances in the first half and strategies to achieve this year's important goals in the second half, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The meetings came in a follow-up to last month's plenary meeting of the Workers' Party of Korea, where North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed his satisfaction with the country's first-half economic performance, stating that the economic situation was markedly improving. North Korea also held a plenary meeting of the Party Committee of the Cabinet on Sunday, attended by Premier Kim Tok-hun and Vice Premier Pak Jong-gun, the KCNA said. The meeting adopted supplementary decisions to "unwaveringly" implement the policy t asks presented to the Cabinet and national economic guidance agencies, it said. North Korea appears to be emphasizing the improvement of party officials' work attitudes, a pressing issue highlighted during the plenary meeting. During a recent visit to oversee a major development project in the northern city of Samjiyon near Mount Paektu, Kim Jong-un reprimanded senior officials for their "irresponsibility," blaming them for causing financial losses. Source: Yonhap News Agency