North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
n general and politician. He was the director of the
General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army
The General Political Bureau (GPB) is the internal politburo of the Korean People's Army (KPA), used by the leadership of the North Korean government to exert political control over the military. The GPB is subordinate to the Ministry of Defence (N ...
(KPA) from when he replaced
Kim Jong-gak
Kim Jong-gak (; born 20 July 1941) , KCNA, 29 September 2010. is a
in May 2018 until January 2021.
Career
Kim Su-gil is a career soldier. In his early career, he held posts in the
General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army
The General Political Bureau (GPB) is the internal politburo of the Korean People's Army (KPA), used by the leadership of the North Korean government to exert political control over the military. The GPB is subordinate to the Ministry of Defence (N ...
(KPA) and its General Staff Department. On 24 April 1992 he was promoted to the rank of '' sojang'' (Major General). On 15 April 2010 he was promoted to ''
chungjang
(; ja, 将, Shō; ) is the rank held by general officers in some East Asian militaries. The ranks are used in both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China on Taiwan. The People's Liberation Army and the People's Armed Police use ...
'' (Lieutenant General). In the fall of 2013 he was temporarily demoted to ''sojang'' again, like many other high-ranking KPA soldiers. He currently holds a rank of four-star general.
Kim became a vice director of the
Ministry of People's Armed Forces
The Ministry of Defence (, formerly 인민무력성/人民武力省 or Ministry of the People's Armed Forces) is the government agency tasked with general administrative and logistical coordination of the Korean People's Army (KPA). Prior to 1992, ...
in 2006. He also served as the Vice Minister of People's Armed Forces since 2010. From this post, he was involved in the purge and execution of
Jang Song-thaek
Jang Song-thaek (January or February 1946 – 12 December 2013) was a leading figure in the government of North Korea. He was married to Kim Kyong-hui, the only daughter of North Korean Premier Kim Il-sung and his first wife Kim Jong-suk, and on ...
in December 2013.
Kim is a close aide of Kim Jong-un and often accompanies him in public functions. Kim has previously served as the Chairman of the Pyongyang City Committee of the Worker's Party from April 2014 to 2018 when he was replaced by Ri Man-gon. In this post, soon after his appointment, he issued a public apology following a building collapse in the city. He was elected to the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) in 2009 election and again in 2014 election. Kim has served as a full member of the
Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea ( ko, 조선로동당 중앙위원회) is the highest party body between national meetings of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea. According to WPK rules, the ...
and an alternate member of the
Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea
In North Korea, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), or simply the Politburo, formerly the Political Committee (1946–61), is the highest decision-making body in the ruling party between sessions ...
since May 2016. He is also on the
Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea
The Central Military Commission of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (CMC) () is an organ of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) which is responsible for coordinating the Party organizations within the ...
.
Kim served on the funeral committees of
Jon Pyong-ho
Jon Pyong-ho (, 20 March 1926 – 7 July 2014) was a North Korean officer and politician who served as the Chief Secretary of the Korean Workers Party (KWP) Committee of the North Korean Cabinet, and director of the DPRK Cabinet Political Burea ...
in 2014,
Ri Ul-sol
Ri Ul-sol (리을설; 14 September 19217 November 2015) was a North Korean politician and military official. He played an important role in the administrations of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, achieving the rank of Marshal of the Korean People's ...
Kang Sok-ju
Kang Sok-ju ( ko, 강석주; ; August 29, 1939 – May 20, 2016 on
in 2016.
In April 2018, Kim was elected a member of the SPA Presidium. Kim Su-gil replaced
Kim Jong-gak
Kim Jong-gak (; born 20 July 1941) , KCNA, 29 September 2010. is a
in May 2018 as the director of the
General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army
The General Political Bureau (GPB) is the internal politburo of the Korean People's Army (KPA), used by the leadership of the North Korean government to exert political control over the military. The GPB is subordinate to the Ministry of Defence (N ...
.
North Korean media
The mass media in North Korea is amongst the most strictly controlled in the world. The constitution nominally provides for freedom of speech and the press. However, the government routinely disregards these rights, and seeks to mold informatio ...
announced the reshuffle in May 2018, after Kim Jong-gak had served for merely four months. It is possible that the appointment took place on 17 May at a meeting of the
Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea
The Central Military Commission of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (CMC) () is an organ of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) which is responsible for coordinating the Party organizations within the ...
chaired by Kim Jong-un.
At a personnel reshuffle at the First Session of the 14th SPA Kim lost his seat in the presidium but was elevated to a member of the
State Affairs Commission of North Korea
The State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (SAC) is defined by the 2016 constitution as "the supreme policy-oriented leadership body of State power."
The current president of the SAC, which is defined by the same ...
North Korea Leadership Watch
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''north'' is ...