Kim Jong-un's first-half appearances highest since 2014, military events peak

SEOUL, July 9 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made more official appearances in the first six months of the year than in any first half since 2014, with military-related events reaching their highest level since he took power, data showed Thursday.

Kim engaged in 92 official activities in the first half, nearly doubling from 50 the previous year, according to the North's state media reports analyzed by Yonhap News Agency and research by the Seoul-based Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU).

The figure trailed only 105 in 2013 and 93 in 2014.

Military activities led all categories with 30 cases, the highest since Kim took power in December 2011 following the death of his father, Kim Jong-il.

By year, Kim's busiest stretch in the military sector came in 2024 with 49 cases. Last year saw 43. If the current pace holds, this year could easily match or exceed both.

The rise in military activity appears to "reflect North Korea's emphasis on military strength as a way to assert its strategic status," in line with its closer ties with Russia and improving relations with China, said Hong Min, a senior research at the institute.

South Korea's unification ministry on Thursday put its own tally of Kim's military-related activities at 40 in the first half, while his total appearances matched the institute's count of 92.

The ministry said the 92 total cases marked a 64 percent increase from 56 a year earlier, attributing the rise in part to large-scale political and party events, such as a key party congress in February.

Meanwhile, Kim's public appearance at events totaled 19, also a first-half record since he assumed power, according to the data by the KINU. Part of that increase stems from a separate tally of receptions and banquets held alongside summit meetings. Excluding those, the number stands at 15, which is still the highest on record.

Kim held two summits in the first half -- one with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in March and the other with Chinese President Xi Jinping in June.

His daughter, Ju-ae, appeared in media reports alongside her father 19 times, with military occasions accounting for the most at 11. This already exceeded her total for all of last year when she appeared 17 times.

Since first appearing in North Korean state media in November 2022 during a round of intercontinental ballistic missile tests, she had appeared with growing frequency each year -- from roughly 10 times annually to 17 last year and now 19 in the first half of this year alone.

Hong cautioned that Ju-ae's public appearances alone cannot confirm her status as successor.

"It is hard to gauge (her status) with the frequency of her public appearances. We have to include other factors like her title, positioning and whether she appears with Ri Sol-ju and Kim Yo-jong," he said, referring to Kim's wife and sister, respectively.

Hong added she may serve as a symbolic figure for North Korea's younger generation by taking on duties similar to her mother's role as first lady.

Among senior officials, Ri Il-hwan, a party secretary, accompanied Kim most often in the first half. Kim's sister accompanied her brother nine times.