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Richard
07-18-2012, 09:03
Seems there's been some survivor musical chairs going on behind the ol' bamboo curtain of late.

Pyongyang pushes aside an "ailing" general who'd been considered Kim Jong Un's mentor. Is the general really sick, or is this a purge to firm up Kim's grip on power?

Richard :munchin

North Korea's Startling Military Shake-up: What It Means
TheWeek, 16/17 Jul 2012

North Korean state-run media reported Monday that the ruling Worker's Party had removed the country's powerful military chief, Ri Yong-ho, "because of illness." The move shocked virtually all foreign experts who closely follow the Hermit Kingdom's secretive communist government, as Ri was seen as a close adviser to Pyongyang's young ruler, Kim Jong Un, who took over in December after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il. Is Ri really sick, or is something else going on? Here, a brief guide:

Who is Ri?
Vice Marshall Ri, 69, was chief of the general staff of the Korean People's Army, appointed to the post three years ago by Kim Jong Il. The pair often appeared together at official functions, and in 2010 Ri won positions on the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party and the Presidium of the party's influential Political Bureau. That put him in the inner circle of the country's leaders. When Kim Jong Un took over, Ri essentially became his mentor, appearing with him to review military parades and attend state ceremonies.

Is Ri really sick?
Many observers doubt it. In recent appearances, he showed no signs of illness — and at one event just over a week ago, he and Kim seemed to be on good terms. The Workers' Party's ruling Politburo dismissed Ri in a rare Sunday meeting, feeding speculation that something was amiss. Typically, the government leaves top North Korean officials who are on solid ground in their posts even if they're terminally ill, but ousts those who are on the outs abruptly.

So what's a more plausible explanation?
It's simple, suggests Rick Moran at The American Thinker. There was "a power struggle between the military and new leader Kim Jong Un, and Kim has come out on top." Ri was reportedly a hardliner, favoring a confrontational approach with the U.S. and South Korea. The younger Kim, some analysts say, is showing signs of favoring a more moderate approach. Kim's father and grandfather before him frequently dismissed generals with no warning to make sure they wouldn't pose a threat. "These guys live the life of a fly," Lee Byong-chul, an analyst at the Institute for Peace and Cooperation in Seoul, tells The New York Times. "This signals that Kim Jong Un's consolidation of power is proceeding faster than expected."

Is this a positive sign, then?
Maybe. If Ri was "hell bent on going to war," Moran says, it's a good thing the moderates have come out on top. Still, the shake-up has left the world wondering just who controls North Korea's million-man army, one of the world's largest. You could also look at the news, Kenneth Gause, director of the International Affairs Group at CNA Strategic Studies, tells The Washington Post, as a sign that North Korea's new leader is taking firmer control over agencies within the government that "can use violence" to stifle dissent. What Kim Jong Un plans to do with his newfound power is anybody's guess.

http://theweek.com/article/index/230614/north-koreas-startling-military-shake-up-what-it-means

North Korean Leader Adds Marshal To List Of Titles
NPR, 18 Jul 2012

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been granted the title of marshal, state media reported Wednesday, cementing his status at the top of the authoritarian nation's military as he makes key changes to the 1.2 million-man force.

The decision to award another title to Kim, who already serves as supreme commander of the Korean People's Army, was made Tuesday by the nation's top military, government and political officials, state media said in a special bulletin.

The formal move comes seven months into Kim's rule and follows several days of reshuffling at the highest levels of the military.

Army chief Ri Yong Ho, a high-ranking figure in both political and military circles and seen as a close adviser to Kim, was dismissed from all posts, the North announced Monday. The government said, without elaborating, that Ri was ill, but there was widespread speculation abroad that he might have been purged.

It is still unclear who will replace Ri as chief of the army's General Staff, but Pyongyang announced Tuesday that a lesser-known general, Hyon Yong Chol, had been promoted to vice marshal. Three other military officials have been named to that rank since Kim took power in December. Ri was named vice marshal in 2010.

The leader's new title is "another brick in the wall of consolidating Kim Jong Un's power, across party, state and military institutions," said John Delury, a North Korea analyst at Yonsei University in South Korea. "In the wake of Ri's stepping down, it takes on added significance. Titles, of course, do not ensure authority. But the regime would appear to be closing ranks around their young leader."

Kim took over as North Korea's leader following the death of his father, longtime leader Kim Jong Il, and has continued to maintain his father's policy of "songun," or military first.

Kim Jong Il held the title marshal until he was posthumously made "generalissimo" — the nation's top military title — in February, shortly before what would have been his 70th birthday. He had been named marshal 20 years earlier when North Korea founder Kim Il Sung was promoted to generalissimo.

In April, Kim Jong Un received a slew of other top posts, including first chairman of the powerful National Defense Commission, first secretary of the ruling Workers' Party, chairman of the party's Central Military Commission and a member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau. In December, Kim was made supreme commander of the military.

It remains unclear how the military reshuffle will affect North Korea's tense relationship with its neighbors and the United States, which stations more than 28,000 troops in ally South Korea.

The South Korean and U.S. militaries have stepped up their monitoring of North Korea's military in the wake of Ri's dismissal, but they've seen no suspicious activities, according to Seoul's Defense Ministry. It gave no further details.

http://www.npr.org/2012/07/18/156957687/north-korean-leader-adds-marshal-to-list-of-titles

The Reaper
07-18-2012, 16:48
Well, if he wasn't sick before, he probably will be soon.

Maybe terminally.

TR