Kim Jong Un was spotted struggling to make his way down a set of stairs in a new propaganda film.- Kim has had mobility issues before, and the footage comes amid speculation about his weight loss.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un can be seen struggling to walk down a set of stairs in a new propaganda film celebrating the country's achievements in the past year. The film's release follows significant speculation about the young dictator's noticeable weight loss.
In the 110-minute documentary film titled "The Great Year Of Victory, 2021," Kim can be seen holding an umbrella and seemingly struggling to make his way down makeshift stairs at a construction site while others in his party descend normally, Reuters and others reported. The Telegraph posted the relevant scene on YouTube.
This is not the first time that Kim, who is in his mid-30s, has demonstrated apparent mobility challenges. In the summer of 2014, he was seen limping on state TV, and later that fall, he emerged from a long absence with a walking cane, leading to speculation that he might have been in poor health.
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The propaganda film that came out Tuesday shows Kim riding horses and visiting various facilities while celebrating North Korea's achievements during a time of hardship, specifically the pandemic and ongoing sanctions in response to the country's weapons programs.
But the film also unusually makes a nod to physical changes in Kim, attributing them to worry over the nation, NK News reported.
Kim "showed us his fatherly side by doggedly braving snow, rain and wind while taking on the fate of the nation and people like his own children," the narrator says, adding that "his body completely withered away, and he showed his motherly side by greatly suffering and worrying to realize the dreams of the people."
In fall 2020, South Korea's National Intelligence Service, the country's spy agency, estimated that the North Korean leader, who is believed to be about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, weighed about 300 pounds, roughly 100 pounds heavier than when he took control of North Korea about a decade earlier.
But in July 2021, about a month after North Korea watchers noticed that Kim was looking a bit lighter, it was reported that the spy agency had concluded that Kim had lost anywhere from 22 to 44 pounds, and the weight-loss trend continued, with the change quite visible in photos.
North Korean state media even addressed the weight loss at one point.
"Seeing respected general secretary [Kim Jong Un] looking emaciated breaks our people's heart so much," a Pyongyang resident said during a Korean Central Television broadcast, Reuters reported last June. "Everyone is saying that their tears welled up."
Changes in Kim are watched closely by expert observers around the world, as these could be indicators of his health status. Succession in the nuclear-armed state is unclear, and his health says a lot about the health of the regime.