North Korea’s Kim Jong Un ‘extremely obese’ at 140kg+, heavy smoker, faces high risk of heart failure: Why the world is watching | Today’s news
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un weighs more than 140 kilograms (about 310 pounds) and is at “high risk of cardiovascular disease,” according to South Korea’s spy agency.
Lawmaker Youn Kun-young shared the latest assessment of Kim’s health on Wednesday, AFP reported. He said the North Korean leader’s condition was classified as “extremely obese”.
Despite the health risks, Kim has shown no difficulty with physical activity, including running up stairs, Youn said. The assessment also found no current signs of health problems, with Kim being closely monitored by his specialist medical team.
Why does his health matter?
Kim’s health is closely monitored internationally as he leads a nuclear-armed country. Any sudden death or serious illness could raise questions about succession and stability in North Korea.
Read also | Trump says ‘very good relationship’ with Kim Jong-un has made him ‘unhappy’ with US –
Speculation about Kim’s health intensified in 2020 when he disappeared from the public eye for about 20 days after missing a memorial event marking the birthday of his late grandfather, Kim Il Sung. His absence sparked rumors that he was seriously ill after surgery.
Kim also has a family history of obesity, heavy smoking and heart disease. His father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung were obese and heavy smokers. Both died of heart attacks.
Kim himself is a heavy smoker and has long been known to be obese.
His reported lifestyle also attracted attention. Paul Smart, executive chef at the Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, worked with Kim’s personal chefs during the 2019 North Korea-US summit. Smart said Kim has expensive tastes and enjoys luxurious meals.
“He likes caviar, lobster, really luxury product. Foie gras, he really likes to indulge in the kitchen,” Smart said in 2019.
Read also | Why Trump is treating Kim while increasing pressure on South Korea
The latest assessment comes as North Korea continues to face chronic food shortages. Elizabeth Salmon, the UN’s special rapporteur for human rights in North Korea, said in February that food insecurity remains a key humanitarian problem in the country.
So far, Seoul’s assessment says there are no signs that Kim’s health is affecting his ability to carry out his activities.
Trump on his relationship with Kim
US President Donald Trump said he had directed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to “substantially scale back” joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, citing his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was unhappy that the US had agreed to participate in the exercises.
“Based on my very good relationship with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, I was not happy that the United States long ago agreed to participate in joint military exercises with South Korea,” Trump wrote.
Trump has criticized the cost of military exercises, saying much of the cost is borne by the United States.
“These exercises are not only expensive, the United States of America (as usual!) pays a large part of that cost,” he said.
