North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has fired his top general and wants his army to ‘prepare for war’.
The state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that General Pak Su Il was fired as Chief of General Staff and replaced by Vice Marshal Ri Yong Gil. Other “top commanders” were fired, transferred or appointed to new positions at Wednesday’s meeting of the Central Military Commission, the KCNA reported without going into details.
The General’s Resignation
North Korea regularly makes personnel changes among its top military commands. Some generals later appear in various positions, while others disappear from public life.
Analysts said the career of the new top general Ri, who only took the No. 2 position in the North Korean military hierarchy on Dec. 31, reflects this process.
“A longtime member of the North Korean military elite, Ri Yong Gil has had ups and downs in his career before reaching the top. Seven years ago, he was rumored to have been executed during a personnel change, said Leif-Eric Easley, an international studies professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.
orders from Kim Jong-un
However, the KCNA cable focused more on what it considered “the important issue of thoroughly preparing the military for war given the dire political and military situation in the Korean peninsula”.
South Korea and its main ally, the United States, were not mentioned in the report. Analysts, however, assume that Pyongyang is referring to them indirectly, pointing out that Wednesday’s meeting analyzed “the military movements of the main perpetrators of the deterioration of the situation” on the peninsula.
“Making full preparations for war” was at the top of the agenda, according to the KCNA report.
“The current situation in which enemy forces are becoming increasingly visible in their reckless military confrontation with the DPRK, [Koreańska Republika Ludowo-Demokratyczna] requires from the latter’s army a more positive, proactive and overwhelming will and a thorough and perfect military readiness for war.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
