The mysterious general behind North Korea's missile program

Kim Rak-gyom, head of North Korea's rocket force, is the general who responded strongly to Trump's threat.

The person standing to the right of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is believed to be General Kim Rak-gyom. Photo: Reuters.

He is like Kim Jong-un's shadow, accompanying the North Korean leader from missile launches to military parades. General Kim Rak-gyom often smiles and jokes with subordinates, but he holds a much more dangerous power than he appears.

General Kim is the head of North Korea's Strategic Rocket Force, which oversees conventional and nuclear strategic defense missiles. The US last month estimated that North Korea had 60 nuclear weapons, although some independent experts believe the number is much lower, according to the Washington Post.

After Trump threatened to unleash "fire and fury" on North Korea, Kim Jong-un announced he was planning to attack the US Pacific island of Guam. General Kim Rak-gyom called Trump's remarks "nonsense" and called the US president a "crazy old man".

Very little is known about this mysterious general. In fact, some news outlets are not even sure who he really is in Kim Jong-un's entourage.

Kim Rak-gyom was promoted from two-star general to four-star general in June 2012, about six months after Kim Jong-un took power. His appointment as commander of the new Strategic Rocket Force was the first sign that Kim Jong-un wanted to accelerate the missile program.

North Korea puts missile development on par with its army and air force. Kim Rak-gyom has a direct phone line to Mr. Kim, according to the Australian.

"With the full capability to carry out precision strikes with nuclear weapons, no aggressor would dare recklessly attack us," the North Korean leader said at the time.

However, being Kim Jong-un’s right-hand man comes with its own risks. After a series of failed missile tests, international media reported in February that Kim Rak-gyom had not been seen in public for six months, including the 69th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People’s Army.

He resurfaced a month later when North Korea launched four missiles, three of which landed in the Sea of ​​Japan. The North Korean military said it was practicing attacks on US military bases in Japan.

South Korean newspaper Yonhap reported in May that General Kim and several other officials were not on the new list of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, the most important military body of the country's army. Yonhap quoted a South Korean official as saying that "General Kim is likely responsible for the failed missile launches."

However, with the KCNA news agency on August 9 quoting General Kim in response to Trump's threat, it can be seen that he still plays an important role in the government.

In addition to General Kim Rak-gyom, the North Korean leader also has three confidants who often appear in photos of him smiling happily after successfully launching missiles.

They include former air force general Ri Pyong Chol, veteran rocket scientist Kim Jong Sik, and head of weapons development Jang Chang Ha.

Kim Jong-un's three closest confidants. Photo: Reuters.

Photographs and television footage show that all three are clearly Kim Jong-un’s favorites. Their behavior toward him is far from the obsequiousness of other senior aides. Two of them even had the opportunity to fly with Kim Jong-un on his private Goshawk-1 plane.

"Instead of having to go through the ranks, Kim Jong-un keeps these people close to him so he can talk to them directly and urge them to speed up the weapons development. This shows Kim Jong-un's enthusiasm for the missile development program," said An Chan-il, a former North Korean military officer who defected to South Korea and runs a think tank in Seoul.

According to VNE