- Pyongyang taps a new vice marshal a day after removed its army chief
- State media doesn't say whether Hyon Yong Chol replaces the army chief
- The promotion is likely the work of Kim Jong Un's uncle, an expert says
(CNN) -- North Korea appointed a new vice marshal on Tuesday, a day after it removed its army chief.
The secretive state tapped Hyon Yong Chol as a vice marshal, according to state media.
It did not say whether Hyon will replace Ri Yong Ho, the departed army chief.
Not much is known about Hyon, but his promotion is likely the work of Kim Jong Un's uncle, Jang Song Taek, an influential figure behind Kim's rise, according to a former commander of South Korean Defense Intelligence Command.
"He was promoted in 2010 to the rank equivalent to that of four-star general together with Kim Jong Un. Not much is known about him," Park Soo-geun told CNN.
"But being promoted to vice marshal means he will now show off his power at the political stage," the retired majored general added.
When and where Hyon was born are unknown.
North Korea said Monday that it was relieving Ri, then-army chief, from all his government posts due to sickness.
Ri was considered one of the main powers behind Kim Jong Un's rise to power.
The news prompted speculation that there might be a power struggle between North Korea's powerful military and civilian elite.
