Kim Jong-un

Kim Jong-un (born 8 January 1982, 1983 or 1984) is a North Korean politician. He has been the Supreme Leader of North Korea since December 2011, after the death of his father Kim Jong-il.

Early life
According to reports in Japanese newspapers, he went to school in Switzerland near Bern. First reports claimed Kim went to the private English-language International School in Gümligen under the name "Chol-pak" or "Pak-chol" from 1993 to 1998. Kim was described as shy, a good student who got along well with his classmates, and was a basketball fan.

Leadership
In December 2011, Kim became the leader of North Korea after his father Kim Jong-il died on 17 December 2011. His grandfather Kim Il-Sung was the first leader of North Korea.

On 9 March 2014, Kim was elected unopposed to the Supreme People's Assembly.

Family executions
On 12 December 2013, North Korean news outlets reported that due to alleged "treachery", Kim had ordered the execution of his uncle Jang Song-thaek. Kim is thought by many to have ordered the assassination of his half-brother, Kim Jong-nam, in Malaysia in February 2017.

Nuclear power
As of 2016, the United Nations has created five rounds of sanctions against North Korea for its nuclear program and missile tests.

As of March 2018, a South Korean official Chung Eui-Yong made an announcement on North Korea in the White House briefing room that the North Korean leader Kim told the South Koreans he is "committed to denuclearisation" and "North Korea will refrain from any further nuclear or missile tests." and is open to meeting Donald Trump in North Korea.

Human rights violations
Human rights violations under the leadership of Kim Jong-il were condemned by the UN General Assembly. Press reports indicate that they are continuing under Kim.

2018 international relations
In his 2018 New Year Speech, Kim said he was open to talk with with South Korea, and also to taking part in the 2018 Winter Olympics in the South. The Seoul–Pyongyang hotline was reopened after almost 2 years. North and South Korea marched together in the Olympics opening ceremony under a unified flag.

In April 2018, Kim and Moon Jae-in formally attended the inter-Korean summit of 2018 and agreed to formally end the Korean War before 2019.

In April and May 2018, Kim met with Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China. In May 2018, Donald Trump said on Twitter that he would meet with Kim on June 12 in Singapore for peace talks.

Personal life
Kim is married to Ri Sol-ju. They married in 2009. They had a daughter in 2010. He attended a state school in Switzerland from 1998 to 2000 posing as a diplomat's son. Kim is reported to have later attended the Kim Il Sung Military University in Pyongyang from 2002 to 2007. His mother died of cancer in 2004.

In 2009, reports suggested that Kim was a diabetic and suffered from hypertension. He is also known to smoke cigarettes.

2020 death rumor
Rumors of Kim's death happened in late April 2020. Kim had been absent on the Day of the Sun, 15 April, celebrating the country's founding father, Kim Il Sung, though had been last seen four days before at a government meeting. Daily NK reported that Kim had gone to a hospital for a heart surgery on 12 April, but according to CNN by 21 April that Kim's state was in "grave danger" from the surgery. South Korea reported in response to these stories that there were "no unusual signs detected" in about Kim's health. The Guardian reported that China had sent a team of doctors on 25 April to North Korea to look at Kim's condition.

References

Other websites
 
 North Korea's Young Leader on Show – video report by The New York Times
 NSA Archive Kim Jong-Il: The "Great Successor"
 Official short biography  at Naenara
 Kim Jong-un's works at Publications of the DPRK

1983 births
 
Living people
Dictators
Generals
Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List
North Korean military people
North Korean politicians
Current national leaders
People from Pyongyang