North Korea's new nominal head of state is a long-time loyalist with deep t...
SEOUL - North Korea’s new nominal head of state is a long-time loyalist with deep ties to the ruling Kim family and whose fortunes have closely followed the rise of leader Kim Jong Un, analysts said.
In that position, Choe will be the constitutional head of state, and is likely to be the public face of North Korea at many official functions. Choe’s father had ties to Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Un’s grandfather and the founding leader of North Korea, and Choe himself had a personal relationship with Kim Jong Il for decades.
In late 2015, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said Choe had been sent to a countryside farm for political reeducation, but in recent years Choe appeared to be gaining more influence since he was promoted in October 2017 to the party’s powerful Central Military Commission. “He is a schmoozer,” said Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert at the Stimson Center, a U.S. think tank. “He’s not one of these guys with bloody knuckles, not someone we would associate with being a leg-breaker in the regime. He knows how to do that if he needs to, but he’s more of a schmoozer.”
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