Im Chol-ung

Im's first significant political post was Chief of Staff in the Ministry of Railways from June 2001 to December 2005. Im's career progression was put on hold after his superiors fell out of favor and he had to move out of Pyongyang for "revolutionization". During this time, he held a temporary position as a railways manager. Im returned to Pyongyang in June 2007 as a senior manager at the Pyongyang Railways Bureau. He was re-appointed Chief of Staff in the Ministry of Railways in January 2009.[2] In March 2012, Im played a key role at a meeting of Asian members of the Organization for Cooperation of Railways in Pyongyang.[3] He became the Deputy Minister of Railways the following month.[2]

Im was appointed a Vice Premier of North Korea on 22 May 2014. The decision was formally made by the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, although it is likely that senior party officials had discussed it beforehand. Im's appointment was seen by observers as a sign that North Korea would continue to improve the state of its railways and pursue international rail connections.[3] He was elected an alternate member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and a full member of its Central Committee at the 7th Congress of the WPK in May 2016.[2][4] Im was one of several politicians from a civilian background (as opposed to the Korean People's Army and security services) that rose to the Politburo at the Congress, shifting its balance to a more conventional direction.[5]

• Politics of North Korea