North Korea 'military reshuffle' raises eyebrows in Seoul
Seoul is monitoring developments in the North's military, it said on 4 June after reports Pyongyang replaced three of its top military officials ahead of a summit with the US.
US president Donald Trump is due to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on 12 June in Singapore with Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal high on the agenda and reports said that the reshuffle could be aimed at taming the military.
In May 2018 the North's state media revealed that Kim Su Gil had been appointed as director of the military's General Political Bureau (GPB), replacing Kim Jong Gak.
According to Yonhap news agency, which cited intelligence sources, the chief of the general staff Ri Myong Su has also been replaced by his deputy, Ri Yong Gil.
And defence minister Pak Yong Sik has been succeeded by No Kwang Chol, previously first vice minister, it added.
The wholesale reshuffle would be unusual if confirmed, Seoul's Unification Ministry said.
Ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun told reporters: ‘We will monitor related developments.’
Pyongyang's military, known as the Korean People's Army (KPA), is immensely influential in the country and a centre of power in its own right, symbolised by the way Kim is habitually flanked by generals on one side and civilians on the other when attending major ceremonial events.
According to researchers at NK Leadership Watch, the change at the top of the GPB ‘represents a continuation of tightening Party control over the KPA.’
The political bureau could be in a position to resist policy decisions by the leadership or try to profit from future South Korean economic aid, it said.
But new GPB director Kim Su Gil was a ‘highly trusted’ lieutenant of leader Kim Jong Un, it added, who appointed him to the Pyongyang party committee – once a powerbase for his uncle Jang Song Thaek – after having the older man executed for treason in 2013.
Reports said the wider changes could be aimed at preventing objections in the North's senior military ranks to any sudden changes in the country's nuclear policy.
No Kwang Chol, the new defence minister, was known as a ‘moderate’, Yonhap cited the intelligence source as saying.
The source said: ‘The North appears to have brought in new figures... as the previous officials lacked flexibility in thinking.’
You may also like
More from Defence Notes
-
![Estonia opts for smart, adaptable and cooperative solutions in the face of Russian threat]()
Estonia opts for smart, adaptable and cooperative solutions in the face of Russian threat
Estonian-made equipment is being put through the toughest of evaluations in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers resisting the full-scale Russian invasion which began in 2022. The country has long seen the threat and is continuing to adapt for the future.
-
![Estonia boosting defence industry with lessons from Ukraine, says country’s economic minister]()
Estonia boosting defence industry with lessons from Ukraine, says country’s economic minister
Estonia is looking to boost its local defence industry with directed funding, industry parks, support through international orders for equipment and rapid prototyping.
-
![UK faces cost of balancing defensive capabilities abroad as Iran conflict widens]()
UK faces cost of balancing defensive capabilities abroad as Iran conflict widens
The UK has recently deployed a Type 45 destroyer to Cyprus and has bolstered its presence in the Middle East in recent weeks with supporting air power to protect neighbouring countries’ air defences.
-
![White House calls on Pentagon contractors to “rapidly and aggressively” boost weapon production]()
White House calls on Pentagon contractors to “rapidly and aggressively” boost weapon production
Intended to sustain Operation Epic Fury against Iran, efforts to increase the production of weapons and ammunition could expose long-standing weaknesses in the US defence industrial base.
-
![India’s strategic defence footprint expansion could be accelerated by Iran-Israel conflict]()
India’s strategic defence footprint expansion could be accelerated by Iran-Israel conflict
The latest escalation between Iran and Israel could shape New Delhi’s next-generation shield as India deepens cooperation with Israel on missile defence and drone production.
-
![Is the US magazine of air defence interceptors deep enough to sustain a long campaign against Iran?]()
Is the US magazine of air defence interceptors deep enough to sustain a long campaign against Iran?
The Pentagon spent a considerable number of THAAD and SM-3 rounds to defend against Iranian missiles in 2025 and has not fully replenished its reserves.
