CMC Meeting Held

The first meeting of the 8th Workers’ Party of Korea [WPK] Central Military Commission [CMC] was held on an enlarged basis on 24 February (Wednesday) at the WPK Central Committee Office Building.  Attending the meeting were CMC Vice Chairman and WPK Secretary Ri Pyong Chol (Ri Pyo’ng-ch’o’l), members of the CMC, corps and service branch commanding officers, executive members of the Korean People’s Army [KPA] WPK Committee, members of the KPA high command and WPK Central Committee Department Deputy (Vice) Directors.

The CMC meeting “referred to a series of shortcomings revealed in the military and political activities and moral lives of KPA commanding officers” and it “discussed the issue of thoroughly establishing the revolutionary moral discipline within the KPA.”  Kim Jong Un said that “to establish the revolutionary moral discipline within the KPA is not just a technical issues, but a fatal issue related to the existence of the KPA and success or failure in the army building and military activities…in order to settle this important issue, it is necessary above all to intensify the education and control aimed at ensuring that the KPA commanding officers of the new generations have the proper political consciousness and moral point of view.”

The CMC gathering “stressed the need for all Party organizations and political institutions of the KPA to regard the establishment of the revolutionary discipline and moral traits as a major task of the present time for thoroughly establishing the command system of the Party Central Committee, enhancing combat capability and giving full play to the noble spiritual and moral superiority of the revolutionary army, and underlined the need to carry out the task in an intensive way.”

The CMC then addressed personnel affairs.  Kim Song Gil (Kim So’ng-kil) was appointed commander of the KPA Navy and given the rank of Vice Admiral (three star, equivalent to Colonel-General [sangjang] in ground forces and internal security).  Kim Chung Il (Kim Chung-il) was appointed commander of the KPA Air and anti-Air Force and given the rank of Lieutenant-General (jungjang).   Minister of National Defense Kim Jong Gwan and KPA General Political Bureau Director Kwon Yong Jin were elevated to the rank of Vice Marshal (ch’asu).