He became a colonel-general in 2014 by order of the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of North Korea, Kim Jong-un. In 1998 and 2003 he was elected to the 10th and 11th convocations of the Supreme People's Assembly, respectively. In 2016, following the decisions made by the 7th WPK Congress, he was elected to the 7th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. In April 2019 he was elected to the 14th convocation of the Supreme People's Assembly, representing the Pongsusan (170th electoral district).