Pyongyang (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Kim Jong-un is the new "marshal" the North Korean Army. It was announced this morning by the official KCNA news agency. The North Korean dictator thus assumes the highest office in the hierarchy of the armed forces of the country, before him held only by his late father, Kim Jong-il appointed "generalissimo" two months after his death. The move comes after an important change in military leadership, which saw the choice of Hyon Yong-chol as the new Chief of Staff, following the removal of General Ri Yong-ho (see 17/07/2012, "Obscure general becomes North Korea's new chief of general staff ").
According to KCNA, the dictator was appointed Marshal by the Central Military Commission, the Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, the National Defense Commission and Supreme People's Assembly.
The new status is seen as a sign of Kim Jong-un's plan to lead North Korea through the army, as was the case with his father and his grandfather, the "Eternal President" Kim Il-sung, before him.
According to Juche, Kim Il-sung's autocratic and militaristic doctrine, soldiers and peasants are the backbone of the country. His son Jong-il in 2000 launched the campaign "the army first", which provides the best of the little available for the military, and urged his son to follow him along the road to power through armed control. Although teetering on the edge of economic disaster, the nation maintains one of the world's largest armies in proportion to its population.
