Kim Jae Ryong
DPRK Premier Kim Jae Ryong speaks about the DPRK Government’s efforts in dealing with coronavirus. Pak Thae Dok is at the left and Ri Man Gon is on the right (Photo: KCTV/KCNA)
updated 13 August 2020
Kim Jae Ryong (Kim Ch’ae-ryong) is a Workers’ Party of Korea [WPK] Vice Chairman and most likely Director of the WPK Cadres Affairs Department. Kim is the immediate past DPRK Premier having served from April 2019 to August 2020. He is also a Supreme People’s Assembly [SPA] deputy.
Kim has held guidance officer and political management positions at industrial sites. His first major position was as a secretary of the North P’yo’ngan WPK Provincial Committee. He was appointed Chief
Secretary of the Chagang WPK Provincial Committee in March 2015. He was elected a Member of the WPK Central Committee during the 7th Congress of the WPK in May 2016.
In April 2019, Kim was appointed DPRK Premier. He was also elected a member of the WPK Political Bureau. Kim maintained the same schedule of public inspection events as his two predecessors. In February 2020 he was appointed head of the DPRK’s epidemic emergency committee and tasked to lead the DPRK Government’s response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Kim Jae Ryong was removed from office as DPRK Premier by an order of the State Affairs Commission [SAC], publicized on 13 August 2020. During a subsequent session of the WPK Political Bureau, Kim was appointed to the Executive Policy Bureau (Council) and made a WPK Vice Chairman. He was also appointed as a Central Committee Department Director, most likely replacing Kim Tok Hun as Director of the Cadres’ Affairs Department.
Kim Jae Ryong
WPK Vice Chairman
Director, WPK Cadres’ Affairs Department
Member WPK Political Bureau
Member, WPK Central Committee
2007 (ca.): Secretary, North P’yo’ngan WPK Provincial Committee
2015: (March) appointed, Chief Secretary, Chagang WPK Provincial Committee
(November) Member, Ri Ul Sol Funeral Committee
(December) Member, Kim Yang Gon Funeral Committee
2016: (May) Elected, Member, 7th WPK Central Committee
Chairman, Chagang (Jagang) WPK Provincial Committee
(May), Member, Kang Sok Ju Funeral Committee
2019 (March) Elected, Deputy, 14th Supreme People’s Assembly
(April) Elected, Member, WPK Central Committee
Elected, Member, WPK Political Bureau
Appointed, DPRK Premier
2020: (August) Dismissed, DPRK Premier
(August) Appointed, Member, WPK Executive Policy Bureau
Appointed, Director, WPK Cadres Affairs Department
