Kim Jong-un and North Korea

A document summarizing the life, power succession, governing style, and latest 2024–2025 developments of North Korea's third supreme leader Kim Jong-un.

Kim Jong-un and North Korea

Overview

Kim Jong-un (born presumably January 8, 1984) is the third supreme leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, and President of the State Affairs Commission. After succeeding to power following the sudden death of his father Kim Jong-il in December 2011, he has ruled North Korea for more than a decade, simultaneously pursuing regime maintenance and enhancement of international status through the advancement of nuclear and missile capabilities and a comprehensive realignment of external relations. Since 2024, strengthened strategic cooperation with Russia has been causing structural changes in the Northeast Asian security order.

Main Content

Life and Power Succession

Kim Jong-un is the third son of Kim Jong-il and Ko Yong-hui, and is known to have studied in the Bern region of Switzerland. After his brothers Kim Jong-nam and Kim Jong-chol were pushed out of the succession lineup, observations emerged from around 2009 that he had been designated as successor, and in September 2010, at the 3rd Conference of the Workers' Party of Korea, he made his official appearance when elected vice chairman of the Party Central Military Commission and member of the Central Committee. After Kim Jong-il's death on December 17, 2011, he was elected Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army, and in 2012 took the posts of First Secretary of the Party and First Chairman of the National Defence Commission. At the 7th Party Congress in 2016 he was elected Party Chairman, and at the 8th Party Congress in 2021 he was elected Party General Secretary, consolidating his power base.

Governing Style and Power Structure

Kim Jong-un has shown relatively faster decision-making and field-inspection-centered governance than his father's generation. While maintaining formal elements of a collective leadership system, he is assessed as having strengthened the concentration of personal power by adjusting the balance among the Party, military, and Cabinet. The 2013 execution of Jang Song-thaek, Vice Chairman of the National Defence Commission, is regarded as a representative example revealing his will to control high-ranking officials. Recently, the public appearance of his daughter Kim Ju-ae has given rise to observations regarding the succession lineup.

Nuclear and Missile Development

Starting with the third nuclear test in 2013, he conducted two tests in 2016 and a sixth nuclear test in 2017, advancing nuclear capabilities. Test launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) Hwasong-14 and Hwasong-15 and development of submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) followed. In 2022, he legislated the nuclear weapons policy and stipulated the possibility of preemptive use, and continues to expand deterrence through reconnaissance satellite launches and solid-fuel engine tests.

Economic and Social Policy

In the early period of his rule, Kim Jong-un attempted some pragmatic changes through the establishment of economic development zones and measures to improve agricultural and enterprise management. However, as international sanctions, COVID-19 lockdowns, and natural disasters overlapped, economic difficulties deepened, and at the 2021 Party Congress he reaffirmed the line of 'self-reliance' and 'defense-first.' In 2024, he has emphasized improving people's livelihoods, including pushing for the construction of local factories under the 'Local Development 20×10 Policy.'

External Relations

He attempted a diplomatic turn through the 2018 inter-Korean summit and the Singapore and Hanoi North Korea–U.S. summits, but after the collapse of the Hanoi talks, denuclearization negotiations fell into stalemate. Afterwards, inter-Korean relations deteriorated, and at the end of 2023 he declared 'relations between two hostile states' and reorganized unification-related and South Korea-related organizations.

Human Rights and International Assessments

The UN Human Rights Council and many international organizations have continuously pointed to the operation of political prison camps, restrictions on freedom of expression, and human rights issues of overseas workers. North Korea defines such criticism as interference in internal affairs and refutes it.

Latest Developments (2024–2025)

In June 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Pyongyang and signed the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, and assessments emerged that bilateral relations had been elevated to virtually the level of a military alliance. Subsequently, North Korea's troop deployment to Russia and weapons support emerged as a major issue in the international community, and in the phase of negotiations to end the Ukraine war, the direction of North Korea–Russia cooperation also arose as a key variable. Entering 2025, North Korea is reorganizing territorial provisions and its perception of South Korea through constitutional amendment, and continuing nuclear weapons advancement, satellite launches, and new weapons tests. Inter-Korean dialogue is in a state of de facto suspension, and a bloc confrontation structure interlocking ROK–U.S.–Japan security cooperation and North Korea–Russia and North Korea–China relations is defining the situation on the Korean Peninsula. The international community is seeking coordination on the effectiveness of sanctions against North Korea and responses to North Korea–Russia military cooperation, while also exploring the possibility of resuming dialogue in parallel.