Hyon Chol Hae, who was general advisor to the Ministry of National Defence of the DPRK and marshal of the Korean People’s Army, was born as a son of a revolutionary in Yanji County in Jilin Province, China, on August 13 1934.

After Korea’s liberation from Japanese military rule, he attended Mangyongdae Revolutionary School and grew up into a competent military and political official of the Korean People’s Army.

During the Fatherland Liberation War he fought bravely in defence of the Supreme Headquarters as member of the Bodyguard Company of the Central Guard Regiment. After the war, he worked at the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the South Phyongan Provincial Party Committee and then as instructor, deputy director and director of a department of the General Political Bureau of the KPA and director of the political department of the 4th Corps, being promoted to a general in his young age of 30s.

As he held responsible posts of the military education sector and the KPA’s supply service sector in June 1976, he worked devotedly to increase the combat capabilities of the KPA in every way.

After assuming the heavy responsibility of the deputy director of the General Political Bureau of the KPA in October 1995, he faithfully supported the Songun revolutionary leadership of Chairman Kim Jong Il during the Arduous March and forced march to make a big contribution to building up the country’s military strength and safeguarding the country, revolution and socialism.

Working as a department director of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK from March 2009, he made energetic efforts for the advancement of the cause of socialist construction.

He worked as first vice-minister of the People’s Armed Forces and concurrently director of the General Bureau of Supply Service of the ministry and advisor to the general bureau from April 2012, and as general advisor to the Ministry of the People’s Armed Forces and general advisor to the Ministry of National Defence from September 2014, during which he took the lead in faithfully following the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un’s idea and line of building the revolutionary armed forces as befitted a veteran of the KPA.

He was elected as alternate member of the Party Central Committee in December 1991, member of the Party Central Committee in December 1993 and member of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee and member of the Central Military Commission of the WPK in April 2012, and also as deputy to the 10th, 11th and 12th Supreme People’s Assembly.

He was awarded the Order of Kim Il Sung and the Order of Kim Jong Il and other high Party and state decorations.

He was conferred the title of vice marshal of the KPA in April 2012 and that of marshal of the KPA in April 2016.

He regrettably passed away after a long illness on May 19 2022.