North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the opening of a fertilizer factory, KCNA reported Saturday. Kim Jong was speculated to be in grave danger as his health condition was not fine since last month.
Kim attended the event on Friday in Sunchon, near the capital Pyongyang, after nearly three weeks of swirling rumours that the leader of the nuclear-armed nation was seriously ill or possibly dead.
The North Korean leader had not made a public appearance since presiding over a Workers’ Party politburo meeting on April 11, and the following day state media reported that he had inspected fighter jets.
At Friday’s event, “all the participants broke into thunderous cheers of ‘hurrah!'” when Kim appeared, the Korean Central news agency reported.
He inspected the facility and was “briefed about the production processes,” the report said.
Kim “said with deep emotion” that his grandfather Kim Il Sung and father Kim Jong Il “would be greatly pleased if they heard the news that the modern phosphatic fertilizer factory has been built,” it added.
CNN reported that Washington was “monitoring intelligence” that Kim was in “grave danger” after undergoing surgery, quoting an anonymous US official.
US President Donald Trump appeared to confirm that Kim was alive earlier this week.
On Friday, Trump refused to comment on Kim’s reported re-emergence.
Previous absences from the public eye on Kim’s part have prompted speculation about his health.
