The National Intelligence Service (NIS) reported on Tuesday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s heart rate is currently at 80 beats per minute, suggesting a decreased likelihood of his previously suspected high blood pressure.
This information was shared with reporters by Park Sun-won of the Democratic Party and Lee Seong-kwon of the People Power Party, who serve as the ranking members of the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee, following a parliamentary audit of the NIS in Seoul.
Representative Park stated that despite known underlying health conditions, Kim has been able to handle lengthy trips between the provinces and Pyongyang, as well as various events, without apparent difficulty. This suggests that his overall health condition is not significantly compromised.
Park also noted that Kim has been delivering direct messages to South Korea through multiple speeches, emphasizing his leadership and instilling optimism about the future. Kim’s efforts to cultivate a unique personality cult that surpasses those of his predecessors, Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong Il, are evident in the installation of mosaic murals and the creation of new badges.
Notably, Kim is glorifying the troops sent to Russia as a significant achievement. The NIS reports that he is attempting to manipulate the narrative around the recapture of Kursk, a historically Russian territory near the Ukrainian border, portraying it as a new victory myth reminiscent of the 1950s.
The intelligence agency also detected plans to establish two frontline museums in Pyongyang.
Regarding inter-Korean relations, the NIS predicts the possibility of a constitutional amendment in North Korea that would reflect the two-nation theory, formally recognizing North and South Korea as separate countries.