It was business as usual Wednesday for North Korean state media, which reported about Kim Jong Un’s achievements and undated musings on the economy — without mentioning the despot’s health or whereabouts.
Speculation about the leader’s condition first arose when he didn’t show up for the anniversary celebration of the birthday of the hermit kingdom’s founding father and Kim’s grandfather, Kim Il Sung, on April 15.
The top headlines from the state news agency KCNA on Wednesday included pieces on sports equipment, mulberry picking and a meeting in Bangladesh to study the rogue regime’s “juche,” or self-reliance ideology, Reuters reported.
The official Rodong Sinmun newspaper published older or undated comments attributed to Kim about the economy, the textile industry and city development, among other topics.
Missing was any mention of his current whereabouts while intense international speculation erupted about the overweight 36-year-old’s health amid reports that he was seriously ill after a cardiovascular procedure.
On Tuesday, South Korea’s government said there were no unusual signs suggesting Kim was ill.
A rep for South Korea’s presidential Blue House said they could not confirm the leader’s whereabouts, or whether he had undergone surgery.
President Trump, who held summits with Kim in 2018 and 2019 in an attempt to persuade him to give up his nukes, said the reports had not been confirmed.
“We’ll see how he does,” the president said during a White House news briefing Tuesday. “We don’t know if the reports are true.”