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The information may seem trivial.
But may have heavy significance.
Kim Jong-Un’s facial features and wrist have made analysts ponder.
In the tightly closed North Korea where most things are kept secret, the smallest detail can give rise to speculation and conjecture.
Right now, experts in the country are busy analyzing newly taken pictures Kim Jong Un and what they can mean. After a month without appearing in public, he has appeared significantly narrower than usual.
—-Picture Kim Jong-Un and the North Korean government in a meeting in Pyongyang on Monday, June 7, 2021.
–Photo: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP/TT–
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—-Kim Jong-Un just over a year ago, in May 2020. A slightly rounder dictator?
–Photo: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP/TT–
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Increases year after year
The third dictator, who according to the South Korean intelligence service is said to weigh about 140 kilos and is believed to have gained 6-7 kilos per year in power since 2011, was a little less round when he spoke for the Labor Party’s Politburo during the weekend.
Pictures like that South Korean site NK News has also shown that Kim Jong-Un has tightened the usually so tight-fitting luxury watch Portofino Automatic by the Swiss brand IWC Schaffenhausen with a few extra holes.
By comparing pictures from last autumn, spring and recently, it is established that the excess part of the leather bracelet has become a little longer.
“A noticeable weight loss may seem insignificant, but it can provide clues to other information that intelligence services are looking for,” said Mike Brodka, a U.S. intelligence officer with the US Special Operations Command in South Korea. to NK News.
– It can be something as simple as a healthier lifestyle or something more complex. We do not know at the moment, but it raises serious enough questions for us to keep an eye on developments in the coming months.
—-Kim Jong-Un’s watch bracelets are now being scrutinized by experts around the world.
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Can be very important
Kim Jong-Un, who is said to be 37 years old, has long been surrounded by health speculations due to his weight and his chain smoking. His father Kim Jong-il probably died of a heart attack in 2011.
– If he has deliberately lost weight to become healthier, it can probably have strengthened his position at home. says Vipin Narang, Professor of Political Science at MIT University, to NK News.
– But if the sudden weight loss is caused by health problems, the fight to become his successor may have already started behind the scenes and that instability can cause problems for the outside world if he were to die suddenly.
When Kim was mysteriously gone for three weeks last spring, rumors spread that he was being cared for after a serious heart condition. Some reports, which came from inside North Korea, even said he was dead.
Once the dictator returned to the public eye, in apparently good health, speculation went instead that he had isolated himself for fear of contracting covid-19.
Many speculations
As early as 2014, Kim disappeared for six weeks and later appeared with a cane. South Korean spies then said he had undergone surgery for a cyst in his ankle. writes The Guardian.
Over the years, there has been speculation in everything from Kim Jong-Un using high insoles in his shoes to appear longer to information about shady marks on his left ear that state media try to hide in official photos.
– It’s crazy that people analyze how loose his wristwatch is. But at the same time, if you look at pictures next to each other, it looks like he has lost weight. And there is a real cause for concern: Both his father and grandfather died of heart attacks, said Jean H. Lee, former head of the AP in Pyongyang. till Washington Post.
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