News media reported late Monday that Kim Jong Un was in grave condition after heart surgery this month, setting off a flurry of debate among North Korea watchers. How believable are these reports? If true, what does this news mean for North Korea, the United States and the world?
In this case, a single Korean-language news source appears to be the sole source of the reports on Kim’s ill health. Officials in both South Korea and China quickly expressed skepticism. On Tuesday, U.S. intelligence officials said there was “no supporting evidence” that Kim’s health was in danger.
However, the Kim regime is unusually personalistic — and any prolonged absence tends to prompt close scrutiny from the outside world. It was unusual for North Korea’s leader to skip the commemoration of his grandfather’s birthday on April 15, a major national holiday. As Washington Post Beijing bureau chief Anna Fifield...
