The Ministry of Defence (, formerly 인민무력성/人民武力省 or Ministry of the People's Armed Forces) is the government agency under the
State Affairs Commission tasked with general administrative and logistical coordination of the
Korean People's Army (KPA). The current Minister of National Defence is General
No Kwang-chol.
History
Until December 1972, the Minister of the People's Armed Forces was called the Minister of National Defence (민족보위상).
It then changed to the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces.
Prior to 1992, it was under the direct control of
supreme commander and
president, with guidance from the
National Defence Commission and the
Workers' Party Central Military Commission. The
1992 amendment to the
Constitution of North Korea shifts its control to the National Defence Commission. The
2016 amendment shifted its control to the
State Affairs Commission. It was renamed to the Ministry of National Defence in October 2020.
Duties
The Ministry of Defence is essentially an umbrella agency gathering the KPA's logistical, political, and personnel components. The ministry also has departments which coordinate relations with foreign militaries, as well as regulating
Government-owned corporation
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a business entity created or owned by a national or local government, either through an executive order or legislation. SOEs aim to generate profit for the government, prevent private sector monopolies, provide goo ...
s related to the
defence industry and other
foreign currency earning ventures.
The ministry, through the
General Staff Department, is responsible for the daily operational planning and management of the KPA's ground, naval, and air commands. It develops strategy, conducts
education
Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...
and training, conveys the orders and guidance of the
KPA Supreme Command and completes certain signals intelligence tasks.
Departments
The Ministry of National Defence contains the following departments:
*
General Political Bureau
*
General Staff Department
*
Security Command
Both the Director of the General Political Bureau and Chief of the General Staff have more power than the Minister.
Ministers of Defence
, -style="text-align:center;"
, colspan=8, ''Unknown''
(12 May 2015 – 11 July 2015)
, -
See also
*
Commander-in-Chief of North Korea
*
General Staff Department of the Korean People's Army
*
General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army
References
{{Commanders of the Korean People's Army
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 Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
Politics of North Korea
Government of North Korea
Military of North Korea
North Korean entities subject to U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions