Officials in North Korea seek medicine for Kim’s health problems related to obesity, Seoul says

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong Un is more obese than ever and his deputies are looking for foreign medicines to treat him for high blood pressure and diabetes, South Korean officials said Tuesday.

“He could have been suffering from medical conditions that are difficult to deal with the currently available medicine,” South Korean lawmakers Lee Seong-Kwuen and Park Sunwon said in a joint briefing, quoting Seoul’s spy agency, the National Intelligence Service (NIS).

The 40-year-old dictator weighs about 308 pounds, they said, adding that the agency believes is his heaviest ever. This put him at a “high risk” of heart disease, they said, adding that he has been showing signs of high blood pressure and diabetes since his early 30s.

“We concluded that his health issues are likely due to stress, smoking and drinking,” the NIS was quoted as saying by Lee of the ruling People Power party and Park of the opposition Democratic party.

If left untreated, they added, Kim could be affected by hereditary cardiovascular diseases as both his grandfather and father, who ruled the reclusive communist regime before him, died of heart issues. 

Kim was looking for “alternative medicinal substances,” said the lawmakers, which has prompted speculations that he was suffering from conditions that cannot be treated immediately.

The dictator, who the NIS previously estimated to be about 5 feet 7 inches tall, appeared to have lost about 44 pounds just three years ago. 

State media footage from the time also showed a leaner Kim raising concerns about his health but observers said it was likely due to a diet change by Kim who wanted to improve his physique and increase public loyalty to him.

But recent footage now showed Kim has likely regained weight.

While there is no way for outsiders to know Kim’s exact health, Seoul’s spy agency has relied on artificial intelligence techniques and forensic video analysis of Kim to investigate his condition. 

Kim’s health remains a top concern abroad as he has not formally anointed a successor to the nuclear-armed nation that is increasing its confrontation with the United States and its treaty ally, South Korea. He has also been bolstering his personality cult, attempting to cement his status as the ruler of the regime and win public support amid economic woes.

Despite lacking a formal announcement, NIS believes Kim’s preteen daughter named Kim Ju Ae is likely the heir apparent with most of her public appearances involving attending military activities with her father.

She is believed to be 10 or 11 years old and first appeared in 2022 alongside Kim as the duo watched an intercontinental ballistic missile test and subsequently attended a massive military parade.

Still, the NIS says it is possible she might be replaced by her other siblings.

Stella Kim reported from Seoul and Mithil Aggarwal from Hong Kong.