On June 3, Choi Il-hwan, Deputy Director of the Munitions Industry Department, was confirmed to have closely accompanied Kim Jong Un during his inspection of a new nuclear material production facility (uranium enrichment plant). Choi is believed to have been promoted to the role of senior official overseeing nuclear capabilities during the 9th Congress of the Workers’ Party held in February this year.
News1 reports that Choi accompanied Kim during inspections of the nuclear material production facility in September 2024, January 2025, and again on September 4, as revealed in the Rodong Sinmun. While Choi was present but not prominent during the 2024 and 2025 visits, he took center stage during this year’s inspection, explaining key aspects of the facility to Kim.
Meanwhile, Hong Seung-moo, Choi’s predecessor as First Deputy Director, has vanished from public view. Now over 80 years old, Hong was not included in the leadership roster of the 9th Central Committee released by North Korea after the recent Party Congress, suggesting his retirement from active duty.
The South Korean government included Choi on its sanctions list in December 2023, along with the U.S., Japan, and Australia, in response to North Korea’s reconnaissance satellite launch. However, his face had not been clearly identified until recently. Intelligence sources report that they have only recently confirmed Choi’s identity through facial recognition.
North Korea appears to have implemented a generational shift in its nuclear weapons development leadership through the 9th Party Congress.
Notably, with Hong Seung-moo’s departure, the composition of key figures accompanying Kim during nuclear facility inspections has changed. In September 2024 and January 2025, Kim prominently featured Hong as the First Deputy Director.
However, during the September 3 inspection, Hong was absent, and Choi Il-hwan took his place. Additionally, Kang Kyung-ho, Deputy Director of the Nuclear Weapons Research Institute, who was not seen in the previous two inspections, was now present.
Detailed information about Choi’s background is scarce. He is not mentioned in the North Korean personnel information book published by South Korea’s Ministry of Unification.
However, Rodong Sinmun photos show Choi standing next to Choi Myung-chul, then Deputy Director of the Munitions Industry Department, during Kim’s first public unveiling of the nuclear unmanned underwater attack craft Haeil in March 2023. Choi was seen taking notes on Kim’s directives, suggesting his long-term involvement in North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.
