By Jung Da-min
 |
| North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency said Thursday that Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, had been appointed as a member of the State Affairs Commission, along with seven other new members, in part of a shake-up of the country's top government organization. Yonhap |
Some North Korea watchers believe she is solidifying her political standing by earning an official title as a member of the State Affairs Commission (SAC).
Kim's appointment to the SAC was reported by the country's state-run Korean Central News Agency, Thursday, along with the adding of seven other new members, in part of a shake-up of the SAC. Nine members were retired or demoted, including 82-year-old Park Pong-ju, a veteran economic official.
Kim Yo-jong has been considered the country's de facto second-in-command, with responsibility for relations with South Korea and the United States, regardless of her official title in the country's ruling Workers' Party of Korea or any government bodies. But as the SAC, headed by her brother, is the country's top government organization that oversees the policies of large sectors, including security and diplomacy as well as economy and social issues, some North Korea watchers say that her promotion could indicate her growing role in running state affairs overall.
Some experts have also said that Kim Yo-jong's solidifying political status could indicate that North Korea wants to engage in diplomacy with South Korea more actively than before, instead of talking directly to the U.S., considering the fact that Kim Yo-jong's role has been focused on relations with South Korea in particular.
Cheong Seong-chang, director of the Center for North Korean Studies at the Sejong Institute, said: "With her official title as a SAC member, Kim Yo-Jong will be able to hold meetings with the South Korean unification minister or U.S. secretary of state."
However, other North Korea watchers have said that the recent SAC reshuffling was not particularly centered on Kim Yo-jong.
Fyodor Tertitskiy, a leading researcher at Kookmin University's Institute for Korean Studies, said: "I would not say it is a particularly meaningful event. The SAC as an organization is pretty powerless, as is any organization chaired by the Supreme Leader, as no one can overrule him, so I think it is more of a pat on the back than an actual promotion. She is even listed last on the rather long list of officials. This shakeup is probably not mainly about her."
