Kim Jong-un has not appeared in public since April 11, when he held a meeting of the Labor Party of Korea’s Political Bureau on domestic policy issues.
The U.S. authorities find it unusual that DPRK leader Kim Jong-un has not been at public events for more than two weeks. This was stated by U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on Thursday on the air of IHeart radio station.
Speaking about Kim Jong-un, the U.S. foreign policy chief noted that the U.S. had not received information “about his appearance in public for a little over two weeks. “This is not unheard of, but it is unusual,” the U.S. Secretary of State added.
“We continue to monitor this closely. We’re working to ensure we’re prepared in the end, in any situation”, – Pompeo said.
“As [U.S.] President [Donald] Trump made clear, whatever is happening, we have one goal, it is to implement the arrangements in Singapore”, – Pompeo added. – “That includes ensuring that the country does not have nuclear weapons and that the future is brighter for North Koreans.”
The DPRK leader has not appeared in public since April 11, when he held a meeting of the Labor Party of Korea’s Central Committee Politburo on domestic policy issues. In particular, Kim Jong-un did not attend the annual session of the Supreme People’s Assembly on 12 April and, for the first time in his reign, did not attend the ceremonial ceremony at Kimsun Palace on 15 April on the occasion of Kim Il-sung’s 108th birth anniversary.
The absence of Kim Jong-un in the ranks of the country’s leadership on the main national holiday gave rise to rumors about Kim Jong-un’s possible illness, which at present are not commented on by officials and mass media of the People’s Republic and are not confirmed by sources in Pyongyang.
CNN later claimed, citing a source in the U.S. administration, that Washington was studying intelligence about the deteriorating health of DPRK leader Kim Jong-un after his alleged surgery. Trump later said at a briefing that, according to him, the media information is not true. South Korean authorities also claimed that there were no data on Kim Jong-un’s illness, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry questioned CNN’s source.