A hermetic dictator: Kim Jong-un, grandson of the dynasty that rules North Korea with an iron fist

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un is believed to be in his 40s. Or at least that’s what most experts and sources believe, establishing 1984 as the year of birth, more precisely January 8th. But for Edward Howell, professor of Politics at Oxford University and one of the great experts on hermetic North Korea, “there is a wide debate about the year he was born, 1982, 1983 or 1984”, he explained to a few months ago on the BBC.

Grandson of the country’s founder, Kim Il Sunghe became one of the youngest leaders in history when he assumed power in 2011 following the death of his father, Kim Jong-il.

As with his predecessors, especially Kim Jong-il, many details about his family are shrouded in mystery.

It is known that Kim Jong-un has brothers on his father’s side, one of whom, Kim Jong-nam, he was murdered in Malaysia in 2017 and many believe that the North Korean leader could have ordered the operation.

Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un’s father, was credited with at least four different partners, although their relationships were mostly kept secret, away from the public eye.

It is believed that the mother of the current leader, Ko Young-huishe was born in Japan and came to North Korea in the 1960s to work as a dancer and became a favorite of Kim Jong-il’s many consorts.

His wife, Ri Sol-ju, is publicly known and appears in ceremonies and state media, but it is not known when they married (there is speculation that it may have happened in 2009). Little is known about “companion Ri Sol-ju” and it is believed that she was a singer who caught Kim’s attention during a performance.

The secrecy is such that it is not known how many children he has. In 2016, Ri Sol-ju was speculated to be pregnant after disappearing from the public eye, but it was never officially confirmed.

It is believed that two previous childrenThey were born in 2010 and 2013, but it is not known whether any of them are male and, therefore, potential successors. In fact, little is known about them.

The North Korean leader appeared before the cameras with a daughter, Kim Ju-ae, which is believed to be the second of the pair. She is about 10 years old and is the only one known, as she has appeared in public at least five times in 2023 and last March with her father at a military demonstration.

There are those who believe that she could be the successor, but for this reason she is still young and Kim Yo-jongKim Jong-un’s influential sister has more experience and better connections to the elite, which could make her the most likely candidate to succeed him.

The third of the Kim dynasty, who ruled for more than seven decades with an iron fist under a communist system, he has since established himself as a major figure in geopolitics both in the Northeast Asian region and globally.

Continuation of his father’s “songun” policywhich gives priority to military development, has a nuclear arsenal that the regime considers its guarantee of survival and seeks to use as a bargaining chip in international diplomacy.

This, added to their ability to produce and launch long-range rockets, puts the United States, a country it considers its main enemy and often threatens, within range of an atomic attack.

Its relations with South Korea, with which it has been in a state of technical war since 1953, have gone through phases of tension and détente, with gestures of reconciliation but also frequent threats and specific military clashes that have never escalated serious.

Kim took advantage of his two allies in the region, Russia and China, distancing themselves from the United States. to improve its ties with them, especially with Moscowwhich according to the Ukrainian government has supplied weapons despite being prohibited by harsh international sanctions and, now, soldiers for the war with Ukraine.

Kim Jong-un’s North Korea, like that of his predecessors, is also characterized due to poverty, hunger and extreme secrecy around all the information that enters and leaves the country, and especially that relating to its political elite.