Report: N. Korea’s Ruling Party Sets Up New Post Under Leader Kim
Voice of America
SEOUL - North Korea’s ruling party has amended its rules to create a de facto second-in-command under leader Kim Jong Un as he looks to revamp domestic politics, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said on Tuesday.
Citing an unidentified source familiar with North Korea, the agency said the holder of the new post of “first secretary” would chair meetings on behalf of Kim Jong Un. Kim cemented his power at a congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) in January, where he was elected its general secretary, taking a title last held by his late father, Kim Jong Il. Now Kim wants the party to play a greater role in government, as compared to the more-military centered administration of his father, the agency added.China's Defense Minister Dong Jun speaks during the Shangri-La Dialogue summit at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore, June 2, 2024. FILE - A Chinese coast guard ship, left, with a Chinese militia vessel, right, blocks Philippine coast guard ship, BRP Sindangan as it tried to head towards Second Thomas Shoal at the disputed South China Sea during rotation and resupply mission on Oct. 4, 2023.
Police officers stop and search people near Victoria Park, Hong Kong's traditional venue for the annual 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown vigil, in Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. People gather near a soccer field which in previous years had been used annually for vigils to mark the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. This year, the venue was blocked off for a carnival by pro-government groups. (Cindy Sui/VOA) A carnival worker tells members of the public they cannot enter the restricted area until later in the day, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. (Cindy Sui/VOA) A carnival worker guards the perimeter of a closed-off soccer field which traditionally had been used for Tiananmen Square crackdown commemorations, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. (Cindy Sui/VOA)
Police officers stop and search people near Victoria Park, Hong Kong's traditional venue for the annual 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown vigil, in Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. People gather near a soccer field which in previous years had been used annually for vigils to mark the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. This year, the venue was blocked off for a carnival by pro-government groups. (Cindy Sui/VOA) A carnival worker tells members of the public they cannot enter the restricted area until later in the day, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. (Cindy Sui/VOA) A carnival worker guards the perimeter of a closed-off soccer field which traditionally had been used for Tiananmen Square crackdown commemorations, at Victoria Park, Hong Kong, June 4, 2024. (Cindy Sui/VOA)
A French gendarme walks past the logo of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in front of the National Assembly in Paris, May 2, 2024. FILE - A gendarme of the French National Gendarmerie Intervention Group (GIGN) takes part in a drill, as part of the preparation for the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games, near Paris, April 26, 2024.
FILE - In this photo provided by South Korea Defense Ministry, South Korean army soldiers, wearing helmets, prepare to cross the Military Demarcation Line as North Korean army soldiers stand inside the Demilitarized Zone in Cheorwon, on Dec. 12, 2018. FILE - This handout photo taken by the South Korean Defense Ministry between the night of June 1 and 2, 2024 and released on June 2, 2024 shows South Korean military officers check unidentified objects believed to be North Korean trash from balloons.