Yang Hyong-sop
Yang Hyong-sop (born 1 October 1925) is a North Korean politician who served as Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly and Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly from 1983 to 1998 (from 1994 it was formally the highest position in the state). He subsequently served as Vice President of the Presidium of the SPA from 1998 to 2019. He is the oldest member of the central leadership of North Korea. Life and career. Born in Hamhung in 1925, Yang attended Moscow State University and Kim Il-sung University, and is  married to Kim Shin-sook, a cousin of Kim Il sung. According to the official biography released by the Korean Central News Agency, he joined the Korean People's Army in June 1950 (approximately when the Korean War started); after graduating from Kim Il-sung University, he served as section chief and then secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, Director of the Central Party School, Minister of Higher Education, and President of the . He was elected Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly in 1983, after having been a vice-chairman  since 1962; in this capacity, he assumed the functions of "de facto" head of state after Kim Il-sung's death in 1994, as the post of President of the Republic was never reassigned; however, actual power was held by Kim Jong-il. In 1998 a new Constitution passed the President's powers to the President of the Presidium; in the same year, Yang was replaced by Kim Yong-nam in that capacity, but continued to serve as vice-president again. He is also a member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party. On 6 January 2007, at a mass  rally in Pyongyang, he gave a speech praising the North Korean government for building nuclear weapons.