Jong's appears to have made his career with the
Korean People's Army. He first surfaced as a public figure in November 2015, when he was listed on the funeral committee for
Ri Ul-sol, the Korean People's Army General and elder
Manchurian guerrilla veteran. In early 2017,
Kim Won-hong was removed from the role of
Minister of State Security (also known as the Director of the State Security Department, SSD). Won-hong had apparently been punished following a party inspection. The appointment of Jong Kyong-thaek as Minister came at the same time as
Choe Ryong-hae was appointed director of the
Organization and Guidance Department (OGD) which works closely with the SSD. According to
North Korea Leadership Watch, "Choe's appointment along with the appointment of Jong Kyong Thaek at State Security are no accident... Choe and Jong's new positions represent a kind of house cleaning to avoid some of the problems that have affected State Security during the last 18 months. Choe and Jong's appointments are also intended to usher in 3rd generation DPRK cadres in the internal security services." In this capacity, Jong directs both censorship and counter-intelligence. For instance, during
Kim Jong Un's trip to the
2018 North Korea–United States Singapore Summit, Jong "supervised the collection, consolidation and analysis of myriad intelligence reports from around the
DPRK derived from eavesdropping and SSD's pyramid-like human intelligence networks. Col. Gen. Jong probably supervised the mobilization of additional electronic capabilities and personnel to monitor the DPRK's defense industry." At the sixth session of the
13th Supreme People's Assembly on 11 April 2018, Jong also took Kim Won-hong's seat in the
State Affairs Commission of North Korea. Jong's military rank is
colonel general. He resides in
Pyongyang. On 22 March 2021, the
Council of the European Union imposed a set of restrictive measures against Kyong-thaek giving the reason for listing: "As Head of the Ministry of State Security, Jong Kyong-thaek is responsible for serious human rights violations in the DPRK, in particular torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and killings, enforced disappearance of persons, and arbitrary arrests or detentions, as well as widespread forced labour and sexual violence against women." Jong was part of a high-level welcoming delegation for
China's leader
Xi Jinping and his wife
Peng Liyuan, greeting them both at the
Kumsusan Palace of the Sun square and attending an artistic performance with them in Pyongyang on 20 June 2019. Jong was promoted to the rank of general on 23 May 2020. On 30 September 2020, he was reported to be demoted to Colonel General, before being promoted to general again. Now he is director of the
KPA General Political Bureau. In May 2025, at a meeting of the Central Military Commission, Jong was demoted to Colonel General, the lowest rank of an incumbent GPB director since the 1970s. In February 2026 during the
9th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea he was appointed vice chairman of the
9th Central Military Commission. == Awards and honors ==