Vice Marshal Cho Myong Rok of North Korea Is Coming
Young Kim
<http://www.kimsoft.com/>
North Korea's vice-marshal Cho Myong Rok is coming to the United States to
meet with State Dept's Albright. Cho is expected to meet Pres. Bill Clinton
during his visit. He is coming as a special envoy of Kim Jong Il. He will be
here from October 9th to 12th at a special invitation of Albright.
Who is Cho Myong Rok?
Cho was born in 1930 in Manchuria. He graduated from Mangyong-dae, the
school for North Korea's elite. He began his career as a fighter pilot. In
1980, he became Commander of North Korea's Air Force, a general and an
alternate member of the Supreme Council.
He was promoted to vice marshal in 1995 and chairman of the First Section
(general political affairs) of the National Defense Council. Cho is one of
Kim Jong Il's right-hand men.
Cho is best known for his daring achievements during the 4th Mideast War
that began on October 6, 1973. Egypt and other Arab nations fought four wars
with Israel and lost heavily in the first three. But the 4th and the last
war was different and favored the Arab side - thanks to Cho Myong Rok.
During the first three wars, the Arab armies relied heavily on the Soviet
arms and advisers. After losing three wars, the Arabs had had enough of the
Soviets and decided to bring in a new team of advisers. Pres. Sadat of Egypt
asked Kim Il Sung for help and Kim readily agreed to dispatch a group of
North Korean pilots and other military specialists.
The North Korean military advisers, some 1,500 battle-hardened veterans of
the Korean War and the Vietnam War, were commanded by Col. Cho Myong Rok.
Col. Cho and the Egyptian Air Force commander Mubarak (currently the
president of Egypt) led surprise air attacks on the Israeli air fields while
the North Korean special forces led the Egyptian troops across the Suez
canal. North Korean missile units were positioned to protect Cairo.
After the victory over Israel, Pres. Sadat sent six Scud missiles to North
Korea in appreciation of Col. Cho's heroism for the Arab nations. North
Korean engineers took the Scuds apart and gained valuable technical
information, which helped jump start North Korea's missile development
projects.
Thanks to Cho and his comrades, North Korea today produces and exports
thousands of advanced missiles to Arab and other nations of the world. In
addition, North Korea is on the verge of becoming a key player in the space
vehicle launching business.
Marshal Cho Myong Rok is a national hero not only in North Korea but also in
Egypt and many other Arab nations.