North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is suffering from health problems caused by obesity, including high blood pressure and diabetes, South Korea’s spy agency has said.
The National Intelligence Service (NIS), South Korea’s main spy agency, told politicians in Seoul on Monday that Kim’s aides are trying to get new medicines from abroad to help the North’s leader.
Kim, 40, is known to be a heavy drinker and smoker and comes from a family with a history of heart problems.
Both his father, Kim Jong Il, and grandfather, Kim Il Sung, who ruled the secretive state before him, died of heart issues.
Kim, who assumed power in 2011 following his father’s death, is about 170cm (5 feet, 8 inches) tall and previously weighed 140kg (more than 22 stone), putting him in the obese category on the NHS Body Mass Index (BMI) chart.
In 2021, he appeared to have lost a substantial amount of weight, likely from changing his diet, but recent state media footage shows he has regained it.
The NIS said Kim’s weight is back up to around 140kg again, meaning he is in a high-risk group for certain diseases, according to Lee Seong Kweun, one of the South Korean politicians at the private meeting.
Intelligence officials told the meeting Kim has shown symptoms of high blood pressure and diabetes since his early 30s and that he will likely eventually suffer from heart disease if he fails to improve his health, Mr Lee said.
Park Sunwon, another politician who attended the South Korean intelligence briefing, said the NIS believes Kim’s obesity is linked to his drinking, smoking and stress.
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North Korea is one of the most secretive countries in the world, and there are virtually no ways for outsiders to know Kim’s exact health conditions.
Kim’s health is the focus of keen attention outside North Korea because he has not formally decided who should succeed him and take control of the country’s growing nuclear arsenal.
His daughter, reportedly named Kim Ju Ae and aged 10, appears to be in pole position, the NIS believes.
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But the NIS has an uneven track record with predicting developments in the North – and refused to rule out the possibility that Kim Ju Ae could be replaced by one of her siblings because she hasn’t been officially designated as her father’s successor.
Since late 2022, she has joined her father on a series of high-profile public events.
State media called her Kim Jong Un’s “most beloved” or “respected” child and broadcast footage and photos to show her rising political standing and closeness with her father.
The NIS added at least 60% of Kim Ju Ae’s public activities have involved attending military events with her father.
