North Korean House of Cards

considered to be close to Kim Jong-un and already a member of the KWP CMC, 516
was appointed to the Politburo as an alternate member. 517 Shortly thereafter, at the
Seventh Session of the 12th SPA, Choe was appointed to the NDC. In June 2013,
he was also promoted to the rank of general. 518 While Ri Myong-su continued to
appear in public, he was a political non-entity. In March 2014, he was not even
elected as a deputy to the SPA, suggesting that he had also lost all of his Party posts. 519
Chart 15: Internal Security Apparatus in 2013
Guard Command
Kim Jong-un
Yun Jong-rin
KWP
Politburo/CMC
Jang Song-taek
OGD
Jo Yon-jun
Kim Kyong-ok
Hwang Pyong-so
Administrative
Department
SSD
MPS
MPAF
Kim Won-hong
Choe Pu-il
National Defense
Commission
MSC
(Jo Kyong-chol)
Departmental Surveillance
Membership
Chain of Command
Administrative Oversight
Later in the month, Kim Won-hong was featured prominently as the only
member of the internal security apparatus to be at a meeting of Kim Jong-un’s
“National Security Council.” 520 At the meeting, the decision to conduct a third
nuclear test was reportedly reached. While very little information on the meeting
was provided in the media other than a few photographs, Kim Won-hong was
presumably present because of the SSD’s responsibilities tied to the test and the
nuclear weapons stockpile.
516 According to Pyongyang-watchers in Seoul, Choe Pu-il, unlike his predecessor, was not close
to Jang Song-taek. Choe’s appointment could have been designed to give Kim Jong-un more direct control
over the internal security apparatus.
517 “Comrade Choe Pu-il: Alternate Member of the Political Bureau,” Nodong Sinmun, April 1,
2013. According to North Korean media, which provided a biographic profile of Choe on his appointment
to the Politburo, he assumed command of the MPS in February 2013.
518 “Kim Jong Un Orders to Confer Rank of General Upon Minister of People’s Security,” KCNA,
June 11, 2013.
519 Park Byong-Su, “N. Korea To Shuffle Senior Defense Figures Next Month,” Hankyoreh,
March 21, 2014.
520 “Photos of Kim Jong Un With State Security, Foreign Affairs Officials,” KCTV, January 27, 2013.
Ken E. Gause
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