| O Kuk-ryol | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 오극렬 |
| Hanja | 呉克烈 |
| Revised Romanization | O Kuk-ryol |
| McCune–Reischauer | O Kŭk-ryŏl |
O Kuk-ryol (Korean: 오극렬, born 1931 in Jilin, China) is a North Korean military general and since April 2009, has been a vice chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea as head of its Operations Department.[1][2] The son of O Jung-song and nephew of O Jung-hup, who allegedly fought the Japanese with Kim Il-sung, O Kuk-ryol was a close personal friend of Kim Jong-il from childhood.[3][4] He has been called the second most powerful man in North Korea. As a Kim loyalist, press reports have named him as a figure to watch in the leadership succession of Kim Jong-un, and the regime appeared to be purging O's proteges in January 2011 to prevent him from being a threat to Jong-un.[5]
O previously served as an air force commander, beginning as a major general and superintendent of the North’s air force academy in 1964, and then as a lieutenant general and air force commander in 1967 before joining politics in 1970 as a cadre in the Supreme People's Assembly.[6] In 1973, he was among the pilots who were sent to aid the Egyptian Air Force during the Yom Kippur War.[2] He was promoted again in 1979 to chief of staff of the Korean People's Army Ground Force, after serving two years as the deputy chief of staff, and then to general in 1985, despite a brief departure following disagreements with the Minister of the Armed Forces, O Chin-u. He became part of the "1980 group", who rose to power as Kim Jong-il succeeded Kim Il-sung, and though he was purged by the regime in 1988, this may have had to do with enabling his later counterfeiting activities.[6][2] In 1989, O returned to his post as the head of the defense bureau of the Workers' Party of Korea, where he served until the bureau was transferred into the National Defense Commission in 2009.[4][1]
In June 2009, O was identified by international authorities and the United States government as a key figure in North Korea's currency counterfeiting activities, specifically with United States one hundred-dollar bills, known as Superdollars. He was reported to have also involved members of his family, including his son O Se-won, in the counterfeiting business, which reportedly took place at the Pyongsong Trademark Printing Factory, a factory under the control of O's Operations Department.[7][8] His other son O Se-uk, who was also a military general, defected to the United States in 2004.[3] He also has five daughters, the eldest of which is a screenwriter for a film studio. O is also reportedly fluent in Russian, Chinese, and English.[6] In 2006 a South Korean intelligence report noted he was perceived as reliable and knew South Korea well.[9]