[3] He graduated from Mangyongdae Revolutionary School and the Soviet Union Naval Academy.

[3] Although the North Korean Army mainly depends on ground troops, Admiral Kim, who was commander of the Korean People's Navy since 1982,[4] was in 1998 installed in the highest military position, the Minister of the People's Armed Forces.

This filled a vacancy left by Choe Kwang, who died in February 1997, and indicated that he was fully trusted by Kim Jong Il.

Kim Il-chol participated as a senior delegate in the inter-Korean defense minister's meeting held for the first time since the division of the Korean peninsula in September 2000.

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