Kim Jong-un’s favourite aide mysteriously vanishes as she’s replaced by North Korean dictator’s powerful sister
A TOP female aide to Kim Jong-un has mysteriously vanished and has been replaced by his powerful sister and propaganda chief Kim Yo-jong, it has been reported.
The North Korean dictator, 36, appears to have orchestrated another power shift within his cabinet reportedly sacking high-flying diplomat Choe Son-hui, 55.
Last seen in December, Choe is an impressive negotiator who climbed the precarious ladder of Pyongyang politics impressing foreign politicians with her perfect English and strong personality, reports .
She was a personal favourite of despot Kim who appointed her vice-minister of foreign affairs – and as recently as last October she was seen giving the ruthless leader “on-the-spot guidance”.
There is no evidence that Choe has been killed in one of the young dictator's infamous purges.
However, her continued absence from state media reports suggests she has been abruptly replaced with Kim's most trusted ally Kim Yo-jong, his younger sister.
GROWING AMBITION
Experts believe her departure is part of a continued power shift away from the foreign ministry towards the United Front Department - the spy division responsible for relations with South Korea.
Writing for the NK News, journalist Wang Son-taek said: “The sudden disappearance of Choe should be interpreted as a sign . . . that she may have lost . . . trust, and one notable development during the period of her fading was the . . . shrinking presence of the foreign ministry itself.”
This is yet more evidence of the growing ambition of Kim Yo-jong – the youngest child of late-North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il.
Much like her brother, she was privately educated in Switzerland and often appears by her sibling's side at well-orchestrated events.
RUTHLESS REGIME
She is currently responsible for cultivating Kim Jong-un's public image and is officially the vice-minister of the propaganda and agitation department.
Earlier this month, Kim Yo-jong showed her increasing power within the government by publicly mocking South Korea as a "frightened dog barking" as the North launched live-fire military drills.
The military exercises, the first for three months, were condemned by the South Korean government — but Ms Kim dismissed this as "mentally challenged".
She said: "As far as I know, the South side is also fond of joint military exercises and it is preoccupied with all the disgusting acts like purchasing ultra-modern military hardware.
"They meant they need to get militarily prepared but we should be discouraged from military exercises.
"Such a gangster-like assertion can never be expected from those with normal way of thinking."
This was the first time Ms Kim has made a public statement and indicates her new status among the political hierarchy.
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Dubbed North Korea’s Ivanka Trump, Ms Kim kept a low profile until last year, when she was hand-picked to head up Pyongyang's propaganda department.
She's believed to be aged 32 and is said to have had a close relationship with brother from an early age.
After studying in Switzerland between 1996 and 2000 she is believed to have attended the Kim Il-sung Military University while also later studying computer science.
