The Whereabouts of North Korea's Chief for South Korea Affairs Jang Kum-chol Remain Unclear... Conflicting Speculations

"Dismissed vs Unknown"
North Korea's Kaesong Liaison Office Closed from 1st to 3rd

Jang Kum-chol, Head of the United Front Department, and Choe Son-hui, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs

There are conflicting views regarding the whereabouts of Jang Geum-chul, who was appointed last April as the head of the United Front Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, overseeing inter-Korean affairs. There are both analyses suggesting he has been dismissed and claims that he has not.

At the four-day plenary meeting of the Party at the end of last year, North Korea undertook a major reshuffle of personnel in the Workers' Party, the highest ruling body, to reorganize its ranks. Following Chairman Kim Jong-un's special mention of strengthening the Party's leadership system at this meeting, a significant number of members and alternate members of the Political Bureau, as well as several vice chairmen and department heads of the Party, were replaced, indicating a full effort to reinforce the leadership system of the Workers' Party.

Among these changes, attention is focused on personnel reshuffles related to inter-Korean affairs. On the 1st, the Korea Institute for National Unification estimated in its evaluation of the plenary meeting that "Jang Geum-chul, head of the United Front Department, was dismissed, and Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the Committee for Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, was reinstated."

Jang Geum-chul was appointed head of the United Front Department at the 4th plenary meeting of the 7th Central Committee of the Workers' Party (April 11), during the reorganization of the U.S. and South Korea lines following the Hanoi no-deal summit. He succeeded Kim Yong-chol, who concurrently held the position of vice chairman of the Party. On June 30, he appeared publicly for the first time accompanying Chairman Kim Jong-un at the inter-Korean-U.S. summit at Panmunjom. Since then, he has frequently accompanied Chairman Kim on field guidance visits, drawing attention.

However, the government authorities have taken a cautious stance regarding Jang Geum-chul's dismissal. The Ministry of Unification is reported to be withholding judgment on his dismissal, opting instead to observe North Korea's future announcements before making a determination. It is also known that there is no consensus among government authorities and research institutions on whether Jang Geum-chul was captured in photos related to the plenary meeting released by North Korean media.

Since the Hanoi North Korea-U.S. summit in February last year, North Korea has refused even dialogue with South Korea. Chairman Kim omitted any message to the South in the report on the results of the Party plenary meeting, which replaced the New Year's address, making interest in personnel and organizational changes related to inter-Korean affairs inevitable. Regarding this, a Ministry of Unification official said, "It is true that there was no message to the South in the report on this plenary meeting," but added, "We need to wait and see whether there will be any additional mentions regarding the South."

Furthermore, attention is also drawn to the personnel changes involving Kim Yo-jong, who has served as Chairman Kim's messenger to the South. Although Kim Yo-jong currently holds the position of First Deputy Department Director, North Korean media introduced her as newly appointed to this role, suggesting she has been transferred from the Party's Propaganda and Agitation Department to the Organization and Guidance Department. However, the Ministry of Unification maintained a cautious stance, stating, "It is difficult to make definitive statements based solely on the results of the plenary meeting," and "It is hard to say anything beyond speculation."

Meanwhile, at the inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office in Kaesong, which welcomed the New Year, there has been no significant contact between the two Koreas. A Ministry of Unification official reported, "The North informed us that they would take a break from the 1st to the 3rd." It is understood that liaison officers from both sides have contact twice daily, in the morning and afternoon.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.