North Korean House of Cards

Name Position(s) Comments
Ro Tu-chol
(71)
• Alternate
Member of the
Politburo (since
2012)
Along with Pak Pong-ju, Ro Tu-chol is
one of the “young” technocrats who is well
versed in external economic affairs. His
appointment to the SPC and the Politburo
• Vice Premier
(since 2003) has been interpreted by many Pyong-
yang-watchers as an effort by Kim Jong-un
• Chairman of the
State Planning
Commission
(since 2009)
to increase the level of pragmatism in
leadership deliberations on economic
development. He was ranked 23rd on Kim
Kuk-tae’s Funeral Committee list and 21st
on Jon Pyong-ho’s Funeral Committee list.
Jo Chun-ryong
Kim Kyegwan
(72)
Kim Chunsop
• Member of the
NDC (since
2014)
• Presumed
Chairman of the
Second Economic
Committee
(since 2014)
• First Vice Minister
of Foreign
Affairs (since
2010)
• Member of
the National
Defense Commission
(since
2015)
• KWP Secretary
for Defense
Industry (since
2015)
Jo Chun-ryong’s direct ties to Kim Jong-un
are opaque, but his position on the NDC
would suggest some regularized contact. He
was ranked 84th on Jon Pyong-ho’s Funeral
Committee list.
Kim Kye-gwan has been a leading figure
in international talks over the country’s
nuclear weapons program, including the
Six-Party Talks. While he presumably has
formal meetings with Kim Jong-un, it is
probably not one-on-one but in concert
with Kang Sok-ju. He did not appear on
Jon Pyong-ho’s Funeral Committee list.
Although Kim Chun-sop replaced Pak
To-chun on the NDC, it is not clear if he
has also assumed his role as Party Secretary
for Defense Industry. In any case, he most
likely has direct contact with Kim Jong-un
on defense industrial issues.
Committee for Human Rights in North Korea
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