Choi Ji-hoon
Choi Ji-hoon is a character that appears in the novel, Full Force and Effect. He was the Supreme Leader of North Korea before being disposed in a coup led by Hwang Min-ho.
Biography
Following the death of his father who had been the Supreme leader of North Korea at the time, Ji-hoon imprisoned his uncle, Choi Sang-u, at a labor camp in order to succeed his father as the new Supreme leader. In 2010, Ji-hoon sought to develop his country's nuclear weapons program but was hindered by sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies. Ji-hoon tasked his foreign intelligence chief Ri Tae-jin with fast-tracking the program in order for the country to be taken more seriously as a superpower. To accomplish this, General Ri arranged for mining to being in the city of Chongju which held a large deposit of rare-earth minerals. The resulting profits were then used to fund the nuclear weapons program.
General Ri's efforts prove to be successful as North Korea test fires an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which crashes in the Sea of Japan, gaining the attention of the international community.
Later, a cargo ship bound for North Korea, which carried parts for the ICBM similar to the recently test fired one, was confiscated by the Navy SEALs. As a result, Ji-hoon and General Ri arrange for the assassination of U.S. President Jack Ryan, who has been an obstacle to their plan, to be done at his upcoming state visit in Mexico City; they later secure the services of an Iranian bombmaker named Adel Zarif and the Maldonado cartel.
Ryan survives the assassination attempt but is injured. General Ri sends a hit squad to kill Zarif to deny any connection to North Korea but Zarif escapes. Knowing that Ji-hoon would torture and kill him for his failure to obtain nuclear weapons and assassinate Ryan, General Ri kills himself and his entire family.
Hwang Min-ho, the Director of Korea Natural Resources Trading Corporation, later lead a coup backed by the Chinese in North Korea. During the coup, Ji-hoon's cousin, Choi Ha-guk led the Army unit that had killed Ji-hoon and his bodyguard. Ha-guk's father, Choi Sang-u, was then freed from the labor camp and installed as the new Supreme Leader of North Korea.
Template:Characters/Full Force and Effect