North Korean leader Kim Jongpun’s aunt made her first public appearance in about six years, state media reported yesterday, quelling rumors that she was purged or executed by her nephew after helping him inherit power from his father.
According to a Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) dispatch, the name of Kim Kyong-hui was included in a list of top North Korean officials who watched a performance marking Lunar New Year’s Day with Kim Jong-un at a Pyongyang theater on Saturday.
North Korea’s main newspaper also released a photo showing Kim Kyong-hui sitting near Kim Jong-un and his wife, Ri Sol-ju, at the Samjiyon Theater.
Photo: Korean Central News Agency via AP
Kim Kyong-hui, 73, was once an influential figure in North Korea as the only sister of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, the father of Kim Jong-un.
She had initially kept a low profile during the early part of her brother’s rule, but she later frequently accompanied him on his inspection trips after he suffered a stroke in 2008.
While taking up many top posts, such as a four-star army general and a member of the powerful Politburo, she was also believed to have played a key role in grooming Kim Jong-un as the next leader.
Kim Jong-un eventually took power after his father died of a heart attack in late 2011.
Kim Kyong-hui’s fate had been in doubt after Kim Jong-un had her husband and then-North Korea’s No. 2 official, Jang Song-thaek, executed for treason and corruption in December 2013.
His death was reported by Pyongyang and remains the most significant in a series of executions or purges that Kim Jong-un has engineered in what outside experts believe were attempts to remove potential rivals and cement his grip on power.
Days after Jang’s execution, Kim Kyong-hui’s name was mentioned in a KCNA dispatch as a member of a funeral committee for another top official. However, she missed a state ceremony commemorating the second anniversary of Kim Jong-il’s death days later.
Her name had since never been mentioned in North Korean state media until yesterday’s report.
Some North Korea monitoring groups in Seoul and foreign media outlets had speculated that Kim Jong-un had his aunt executed or purged, or she died of health problems.
Outside experts said Kim Kyong-hui had long suffered from liver and heart problems and high blood pressure.
Analyst Cheong Seong-chang at South Korea’s private Sejong Institute said that Kim Kyong-hui’s re-emergence suggested Kim Jong-un was attempting to strengthen the unity of his ruling family as he is pushing to harden his position toward the US in stalled nuclear negotiations.
However, Kim Kyong-hui is unlikely to regain her political influence, as she now has no position in the politburo, which has already been filled with new figures, Cheong said.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in
RSS