The First Enlarged Meeting of the 8th Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) took place at the office building of the Central Committee of the WPK on Feb. 24.
Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, guided the enlarged meeting.
Attending the meeting were Ri Pyong Chol, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the WPK, and its members.
Also present at the meeting were commanding officers of the services and corps-level units of the Korean People’s Army (KPA), executive members of the KPA Committee of the WPK, commanding officers of some armed forces organs and vice-directors of the relevant departments of the C.C., WPK.
The meeting referred to a series of shortcomings revealed in the military and political activities and moral life of KPA commanding officers, and mainly discussed the issue of thoroughly establishing the revolutionary moral discipline within the KPA.
To establish the revolutionary moral discipline within the KPA is not just a technical issue, but a fatal issue related to the existence of the KPA and success or failure in the army building and military activities, the respected General Secretary said, and added that in order to settle the important issue, it is necessary above all to intensify the education and control aimed at ensuring that the KPA commanding officers of the new generation have the proper political consciousness and moral point of view.
The meeting 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.
Then the meeting discussed an organizational matter on dismissing or appointing major commanding officers of the armed forces organs.
The Central Military Commission of the WPK appointed Kim Song Gil as commander of the Navy of the KPA and conferred the title of Vice Admiral on him.
Kim Chung Il was appointed as commander of the KPA Air and Anti-Aircraft Force and the title of Lieutenant General was conferred on him.
A decision to promote the military ranks of major commanding officers was also adopted at the meeting.
According to the decision of the Central Military Commission of the WPK, the title of KPA Vice Marshal was conferred on Kim Jong Gwan, minister of National Defence of the DPRK, and Kwon Yong Jin, director of the KPA General Political Bureau.