Ministry of Unification: "Ri Pyong-chol May Be Demoted from Standing Committee Member to Candidate Member"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The Ministry of Unification has indicated that Ri Pyong-chol, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of North Korea, may have been demoted from a member of the Standing Committee to a candidate member.

An official from the Ministry of Unification told reporters on the 8th, "Vice Chairman Ri was standing in the third row alongside candidate members of the Political Bureau, so it is possible that he has been demoted to a candidate member."

In the photo released by the Korean Central News Agency on the same day, the first row shows Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, along with Choe Ryong-hae, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, Jo Yong-won, Party Organization Secretary, and Kim Tok-hun, Premier of the Cabinet, all standing side by side as members of the Political Bureau Standing Committee.

Since Vice Chairman Ri, who was previously a Standing Committee member, is seen standing in the third row with candidate members of the Political Bureau, it is highly likely that he has been removed from the Standing Committee. The successor to the Standing Committee member has not yet been confirmed.

Additionally, Park Jong-chon, Chief of the General Staff, who is standing at the far right of the second row, appears to have been demoted from Marshal to Vice Marshal based on the rank insignia. Choe Sang-gun, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Head of the Science Education Department, who would normally be expected to attend given his position, was not identified in this photo, raising the possibility of personnel changes.

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