North Korea’s newly-declared Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un is marking his birthday on January 8, the first while in the country’s top position. But what birthday is it?
January 8 is not currently a national holiday on North Korean calendars. That’s no surprise, as when they were printed, Dear Leader Kim Jong-il was alive, and his son – having his birthday on that day – did not expect to mark it in the position of new chief. Observers are wondering if the day is to be pompously celebrated in order to strengthen the new leader’s position, Itar Tass reports. Generally, no big festivities are expected, as fewer than two weeks have passed since the funeral of Kim Jong-il, who died on December 17 of last year. However, it is believed that North Korean authorities would want to launch the tradition of celebrating the younger Kim’s birthday as a national holiday. But just how young is he?
It’s impolite in Russia to ask a woman about her age. While Kim Jong-un is not a woman, and is not in Russia, his true age remains a mystery for the world, as it has not yet been officially revealed by the North Korean leadership. He is reported to be between 26 and 28 years old, according to different estimates. However, some believe that the country’s leadership may announce him as being 30, in order for him to fit into the “mystical” scheme of his ancestors: Kim Jong-il would have turned 70 in 2012, and Kim Il-sung would have marked his 100 anniversary this year.
With the youngest son of the late Kim Jong-il having taken the reins of the world’s most secretive state, little is known about the man who has been described as an out-of-shape, heavy drinker who is the spitting image of his father. His ascension to power increased the media’s hunger for information about him, and his expensive education in Switzerland suddenly attracted much more interest. Earlier, RT spoke to one of his former classmates to shed some light on the man who now heads the hermit kingdom.