Kim Jong-Il

The agency said the action appeared to be a routine test, unrelated to Kim Jong Il's death.

Al Gore is back in the news today because President Obama is saying he might send him to North Korea to negotiate with Kim Jong-Il.

There was Kim Jong-il, known as the "Dear Leader" , and with him was his third son, Kim Jong-un.

North Korea's reclusive leader Kim Jong-il is thought to be ill and trying to ensure the succession of his youngest son.

"They clearly are interested in the region not spinning out of control, " he said, adding a reference to Kim Jong-il.

"By granting a title to his only sister, Kim Jong-il is trying to signal that he is prioritising the army, " Mr Choi said.

Kim Jong-il was one of the world's most reclusive and enigmatic leaders, presiding over a secretive and internationally isolated country.

ROK President Lee Myung-bak said he is willing to meet with DPRK leader Kim Jong Il to help the denuclearization of Korean peninsula.

Washington is also concerned that Kim Jong Il is trying to present North Korea internationally as a declared nuclear-power.

He also stressed there was no sign of a detente from Pyongyang while Kim Jong-eun, the third son of Kim Jong-il, was being styled for power.

And yet such a dialogue is completely absent since Kim Jong-il's stroke.

But there was one area where we agreed: It was not in either of our interests to let Kim Jong-il have a nuclear weapon.

But he was careful to defer to his father, saluting the troops below only after Kim Jong Il began to raise his hand to do so.

Clinton had an hour and a quarter of talks with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, followed by a two-hour dinner with him.

Kim Jong Il came out to the Pyongyang airport to greet him, a rare sortie for North Korea's dictator even when he was less frail.

HE MAY be a few pixels short of a picture these days, but as an auctioneer North Korea's nuclear-capable Kim Jong Il is without peer.

The agency said the action appeared to be a routine test that was unrelated to Kim Jong Il's death.

Contrary to western media speculation, Kim Jong Il did not step down nor did he hand over any of his powers to his son.

This week, Beijing appeared to be cutting Pyongyang yet more slack by welcoming Kim Jong-il, North Korea's leader, for a secretive visit.

The death of Kim Jong Il also raises the question of who among those who served him will carry out his wishes after his death.

Then, in case of Kim Jong Il's sudden death, he says, they will become "sort of prince-regent and princess-regent. "

Then, when Kim Jong Il was born, propagandists reported that the sky was filled with lightning and thunder, as well as a rainbow.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il did not attend the performance. Other senior North Korean officials were in the audience.

In rising through the ranks, Kim Jong-il's skills were chiefly used as a propagandist, a field in which he could indulge his love of cinema.

But the agreement begun to unravel in August, around the time leader Kim Jong Il is believed to have suffered a stroke.

Her sister is married to a government official in the capital, Pyongyang, she said, but neither is a fan of Kim Jong-il.

Kim Jong-il has now decided to call Seoul's bluff in an extremely risky attack that is in effect an act of war.

Indeed, Kim Jong-il appeared to have ruled over a country wracked by poverty and starvation.

But I'm beginning to worry about strategic patience when Kim Jong Il could die at any moment.

Regional experts say while that may solidify his path to succeed his father, for now there is no doubt that Kim Jong Il remains in charge.

The point of engaging North Korea was to coax Kim Jong Il and his regime to behave better.

Unfortunately, the situation is only likely to worsen as "Dear Leader" Kim Jong Il attempts to pass power on to his son, Kim Jong-un.

At the last congress, Kim Jong-il received the party titles that anointed him as heir apparent to his father, Kim Il-sung.

But Kim Jong Il has now put his own son into a potential rivalry with his sister and brother-in-law, analysts noted.

North Korea's state media continued to issue eulogies of Kim Jong Il and plaudits of the new leader Kim Jong Eun on Wednesday.

Kim Jong-il inspects a cotton farm of the Korean People's Army's 1596 unit in an undisclosed place in North Korea.

Regional political analysts say those positions clearly set him on the road to succeeding his father, Kim Jong Il.

They said the rare white sea cucumber has come to hail the auspicious event of electing Secretary Kim Jong Il as Party General Secretary.

Although two other pictures are said to show him, it has never been possible to verify that they are really of Kim Jong-il's youngest son.

NUCLEAR blackmail is an old trick of Kim Jong Il, North Korea's 68-year-old dictator, learnt at the knee of his father, Kim Il Sung.

Park Ji-won, a close aide to the late Kim, said the North's delegation would carry a wreath from Kim Jong-il and visit for two days.

Kim Jong Il leaves his country with an entrenched and repressive economic system whose collapse would bring a steep price to its neighbors.

He said North Korean leader Kim Jong Il just concluded visit to China, China-DPRK traditional friendship has been further sublimation.

South Korea's currency and main stock index have dropped after North Korea's state media said the country's leader Kim Jong-il had died.

North Korea has held a ceremony to mark a year since the death of Kim Jong-il.

We do not know North Korea's future after Kim Jong-il.

The succession plan that Kim Jong Il designed for his son is little more than a year old.

It is no coincidence that this commission is chaired by Kim Jong Il himself.

Kim Jong Il reinforced that message with a trip to China last month that retraced some of the places his father learned communist ideology.

If you drink it, you will feel the sense of endless love of our people for the great leader Kim Jong Il.

Kim Jong-il keeps many of his most advanced planes hidden deep beneath the surface.

North Korea has announced that the body of late leader Kim Jong-il will lie in state permanently at a palace in the capital, Pyongyang.

North Korea's number-two leader, Kim Yong Nam, later hosted a dinner for Mr. Roh, but Kim Jong Il did not attend.

He is the son of Kim Jong Il's third wife, Ko Yong Hee. He was sent to a private boarding school in Switzerland for part of his education.

As well, some people speculated Kim Jong Il, who suffered a stroke-like illness two years ago, was in poor health again.

When he was younger, Lee Chek says, he wanted to be a soldier for Kim Jong Il, and "fight Japan. "

Judging by recent developments inside North Korea, however, clinging on to its nukes may not actually help prolong Kim Jong-il's regime.

Greater aggression towards the South may also be part of a succession strategy by Kim Jong-il.

Kim Jong-il reportedly cited South Korea's recent military exercises with the United States as a reason for the artillery strike.

Despite years of food shortages, North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has long showered his aides with luxury items to win their loyalty.

Analysts say Kim Jong Il's visit or to obtain financial or food aid, either to show his firm hold power.

At the last congress in 1980, the current boss, Kim Jong Il, was elevated to the position from which he eventually succeeded his father.

But some people have managed to leave the country and speak out about the repressive regime of Kim Jong-Il.

Indeed, Kim Jong-il's approval rating in his country may well be higher than President Obama's is in the United States.

She met the leader Kim Jong Il in 2002 in an attempt to end the bad blood between the two families.

Stalinist dictator Kim Jong-il is ailing but appears still to be very much in charge of his brutal regime.

In a country where I would be publicly executed for writing this, a Kim Jong il is the only one having a good time.

The regime of President Kim Jong-il said it would take "firm military action" if the UN and its allies tried to isolate it further.

One day, Ko Young-hee is a dance studio dance practice, Kim Jong-il to see the beauty of the tall, suddenly excited.

Kim Jong Il is said to be seriously ill. There have been repeated stories of strokes and pancreatic cancer.

It's all about the taupe: North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has recently gone from man of mystery to international fashion icon.

In a report on Saturday, KCNA quoted Ji Yong Song, a 70-year-old Pyongyang resident, saying, "Snowfall makes me miss Kim Jong Il so much. "

Kim Jong Il also named Jang Song Taek, his brother-in-law and a member of National Defense Commission, as vice chairman of the commission.

And yet, it seems Kim Jong-Il of North Korea is a luxury retailer's dream customer.

So now Beijing wants the U. S. to talk to Kim Jong-il again, with South Korea, Japan, Russia and China participating.

Kim Jong-il himself most recently declared the North Korean negotiating position: yes to talks, no to any preconditions.

Kim Jong-il did not attend the parliament's previous one-day meeting earlier this year.

The lights dimmed. A woman came onstage wearing a sparkling white dress and praised Kim Jong Il in a trembling voice.

Beijing has its own, genuine frustrations with the dangerously unpredictable Kim Jong-il and his country's nuclear weapons programme.

Unfortunately, little appears to have been done, despite continuing, visible evidence of Kim Jong Il's physical decline.

Jeong-eun came into power a years ago after the death of his father Kim Jong Il.

In South Korea, doubt and confusion flared on Wednesday over whether the North had fabricated some of the details of Kim Jong-il's death.

In vladivostok, Kim Jong-il will visit a Far EAST State University, a children center and a warship of the Russian Pacific Fleet.

Analysts have speculated that Kim Jong-il is likely to use the gathering to hand an important party position to his third son, Kim Jong-un.

For South Koreans, Kim Jong Il's health is no matter of petty gossip, but a national security issue of the first order.

Thousands of residents applaud at a square during the inauguration of a mosaic portrait of Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, April 9, 2012.

Kim Jong-il was regularly hailed by the media as the "fearless leader" and "the great successor to the revolutionary cause" .

He was there with North Korea's current leader and his father, Kim Jong-il, who's believed to be in poor health.

Collected here are a few recent photos released by the KCNA of Kim Jong-il giving "on-the-spot" field guidance.

Some analysts believe this month's ruling party congress was delayed so Kim Jong-il could strike a political compromise with her.

That delegation appears to be part of a new approach by North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong Il.

Outside one of the capital's main performance centers, mourners carried wreaths and flowers toward a portrait of Kim Jong Il.

North Korean officials reject the reports as a worthless conspiracy. Nonetheless, Kim Jong Il has not been seen in public since August 14.

It remains unconfirmed whether leader Kim Jong Il, believed to be recovering from a stroke, is actually in control of the country.

We could speculate that Kim Jong Il wants to prevent having too high a concentration of power in the hands of one of his relatives.

North Korea had exploded a nuclear bomb in 2006 and Washington did not want its ally shaking hands or signing agreements with Kim Jong Il.

Now, Kim Jong-il's failing health is compelling Mr. Kim to begin a crash program to present his son as the next leader.

North Korea has warned "foolish politicians" around the world not to expect any changes in policy after the death of Kim Jong-il.

A new star is said to have emerged in the sky when Kim Jong-il was born.

Kim Jong Il's last smite to the West may be to die in the midst of the worst recession of the last half-century.

The U. S. wants to implement sanctions to force Kim Jong Il to give up his nuclear-weapons arsenal and military activities.

Recently, the North Korean media reported Kim Jong-il in a row South Hamgyong inspect factories and enterprises in Hamhung City, the news.

Kim Jong-il looks set to be the last North Korean leader to enjoy a semi- divine status and rule the nation single-handedly.

If these talks ever make Kim Jong-Il give up his nukes, nobody in his right mind will hold Mr Bush's decision to talk against him.

It is possible that Kim Jong Il may expect the regent to govern indefinitely.

He sat next to his father, President Kim Jong-il, at a games and dance festival in the North Korean capital Pyongyang.

A fierce battle is being waged behind the scenes for control of North Korea as Kim Jong-il prepares to anoint his successor, it has emerged.

South Korean government officials late Friday said they received information that it was Kim Jong Il making the trip, instead.

Add to the uncertainty are the motivations, health and even state of mind of North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-il, remained cloaked in mystery.

Almost nothing is publicly known of the characters of the military top-brass whose powers have been steadily growing under Kim Jong-il.

There he met Kim Jong Il, the grim-faced leader of the world's most repressive regime and a defiant nuclear bomb-tester to boot.

Approaching the post-Kim Jong-il leadership is not advisable, in part because we do not know who is really in charge.

The first thing he asked me was to help him get some dynamite, so that he could blow up Kim Jong Il.

Choe Yong Rim succeeds Kim Yong Il, whose travels overseas gave him more contact with foreign leaders than even Kim Jong Il.

Kim Jong Il's books are written primarily to be showpieces for the regime, for display in libraries and museums.

Kim Jong Il's sister Kim Kyong Hui has been promoted to the rank of general and is part of the party leadership.

Kim Jong-il, who was known for his love of rich food and alcohol, had been visibly frail since suffering a suspected stroke in 2008.

Tangun, Korea's mythical founder, was born on its slopes, and Kim Jong Il, in his official biography, made sure he followed suit.

At the beginning of in new century Kim Jong-il, has proposed "New idea" thought.

The current dictator, Kim Jong Il, inherited power from his father, Kim Il Sung.

The meeting was the party's biggest since 1980, when Kim Jong Il made his public debut.

A rumour is circulating that Kim Jong-il has died and that this is the regime's reflex.

The youngest son of reclusive leader Kim Jong-il is rumoured to have stood - a signal that his father is grooming him, analysts said.

Speculation in South Korean media that Kim Jong-Il may have cancer is the latest development in a busy month for North Korea watchers.

During the rule of Kim Jong-il, the statement was issued as a joint editorial of the country's main official media.

During the shaky period following Kim Jong-il's stroke in August 2008, he was thought to have taken over everyday decision-making power.

North Korea's weapons drive serves multiple purposes for the authoritarian regime of its dictator, Kim Jong Il.

In the office hung portraits of Kim Il Sung, North Korea's founder, and Kim Jong Il -- no photos of Kim Jung Eun had yet been hung.

Kim Jong-il was anointed heir-apparent to his father at the last party congress held in 1980.

Q: Kim Jong Un, the third son of Kim Jong Il was appointed general today and is likely to be the successor.

North Korea's official story is that Kim Jong Il came into the world on a mythic mountaintop under a double rainbow.

Did Kim Jong-il really fail to grasp that redenomination would not cure inflation, but worsen it?

The Chinese, in turn, briefed the Americans on Kim Jong Il's visit to Beijing earlier this month and the state of his health.

Ailing leader Kim Jong-il, is thought to have suffered a stroke last summer and has appeared frail in public appearances.

It has fallen to America to shore him up, reassure South Koreans and send a stern warning to the North's president, Kim Jong Il.

her husband, Jang Song Taek, is, as the vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, Kim Jong Il's number two.

Kim Jong-il's devoted commitment to his father's particular Marxist-Leninist vision was fundamental.

BILLBOARD HIT : Along the main road back into Pyongyang, van Houtryve captured these concrete and tile mosaic murals of leader Kim Jong Il.

The 39-year-old was once tipped to succeed Kim Jong-il before trying to sneak into Japan to go to Disneyland.

The ground shook as they filed past the main podium, where Kim Jong-il and his son were watching.

They add a guilty verdict is almost certain in a North Korean justice system that protects the unquestioned rule of leader Kim Jong- il .

Would the attack create unity within the military ranks that might help smooth the succession process when Kim Jong-il finally dies?

The coach was punished for "betraying" Kim Jong-un - one of Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il's sons and heir apparent.

Kim Jong Un, the youngest son of Kim Jong Il, North Korea's ailing Dear Leader, moved up the ranks as heir apparent.

With regard to your second question, yesterday was General Secretary Kim Jong-Il's birthday and we wish him a happy birthday.

North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il made a rare public appearance to greet President Kim Dae-jung at the airport in the North Korean capital.

Kim Jong Eun, son of leader Kim Jong Il, has just taken his first position within the party, which rules North Korea.

Kim Jong Il, for nearly two decades as the leader of North Korea, wasn't often seen and wasn't once heard by the outside world.

There's speculation that one of Kim Jong Il's daughters appeared with him recently on one of his well-publicized 'guidance visits. '

The motives behind North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's 'unofficial' visit to China last week may not be that hard to decipher.

But a marriage to maintain the end of three years, since Kim Jong-il's second woman appeared.

Kim Jong-il's death should not have come as a complete surprise to anyone, given his tenuous health.

It is an act to show off the North Korean peoples loyalty, solidarity and iron will in serving their Kim Jong- il .

Last week, immediately prior to Kim Jong Il's death, there were whispers of a possible thaw in relations.

And even NK Reform Radio is getting in on the action with an original drama called What Did Kim Jong Il Eat During the Famine?

Russian Far East Primorye region Executive Total gold (Sergei Darkin) station to meet Kim Jong Il may be Hassan.

Washington accelerated its efforts to try to discuss North Korea with the PLA in 2008 following reports that Kim Jong Il suffered a stroke.

But Kim Jong Il, his son, who took over in 1994, has never been that popular.

Kim Jong Il is widely reported to have suffered a stroke in August and has been absent from many public functions in recent months.

Yet Kim Jong Il, North Korea's leader, is so unpredictable that it is hard to know where that might lead.

But Kim Jong Il did spend some time inspecting sites related to the revolutionary days in China of his own late father, Kim Il Sung.

The network raises hard currency to pay for luxury items like liquor, exotic food and expensive cars for friends of Kim Jong-Il, Levey said.

For tourists, the days are filled with sights that have what ruler Kim Jong Il calls 'high ideological content. '

Why was the original Kim so revered and why did public opinion decline toward his son, Kim Jong Il?

IF NORTH KOREA were not so tragic and dangerous, the scenes broadcast to the world after the funeral of Kim Jong Il would have been comic.

Kim Jong Il's half-brother, Kim Pyong Il, North Korea's permanent ambassador to Poland, may be in attendance.

Official media said Kim Jong Il was re-elected as party general secretary to a thunderous standing ovation.

But the sudden death of Kim Jong Il has accelerated the need for accounts of the younger Mr. Kim as the rightful heir.

SEOUL: Kim Jong-il's companion and former secretary is emerging as a key player in North Korea after the autocratic leader's stroke.

Whatever else you may say about Kim Jong-il, his sense of timing is exquisite.

Saturday was the birthday of current leader Kim Jong-il's son and heir apparent, Kim Jong-un.

The statement chimes with the choreography on Wednesday and Thursday of the funeral of Kim Jong-il, who died last weekend.

America and Japan share an obvious interest in persuading Kim Jong Il not to lob missiles in their direction.

The death of Kim Jong-il, North Korea's ruthless, cognac-loving dictator, should be a watershed.

Further provocations are possible, especially as the North tries to build political support for succession of power to Kim Jong-il's son.

Then, Kim Jong Il set out to take the train with the Mercedes - Benz bullet-proof car to the station 80 km away Bulie Ya.

As the parade ended, many of those who had taken part surged forward towards the podium and began chanting Kim Jong-il's name.

Kim Jong-il's half brother, Kim Pyong-il, has been kept at a safe distance as an ambassador in eastern Europe.

Securing the succession is of increasing importance because Kim Jong-il looks increasingly fragile after a suspected stroke in 2008.

Habitually clad in a boiler suit tailored to highlight his portly frame, Kim Jong Il seems an unlikely style icon.

Kim Jong Il's brother-in-law, Chang Sung Taek, and sister Kim Kyong Hui will also be crucial figures.

This week, Kim Jong Un and his aunt, the sister of Kim Jong Il, became four-star generals with little military experience.

They see no existential threat to Kim Jong-il and his government, whether through civil unrest, political factionalism or a military revolt.

Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, may have suffered a stroke within the past two weeks, a US intelligence official said yesterday.

However, Kim Jong-il did relieve the crisis somewhat by appealing for international assistance, particularly from China.

Kim Jong Il watched here translated into Korean propaganda video, and visited the mechanical room hydropower facilities.

Nobody knows whether the North Korean regime will survive, nor what might come after Kim Jong Il and Kim Junior.

In return for loyalty to Kim Jong-il, top party cadres would receive coveted goods like luxury cars, imported alcohol, and plush apartments.

Since mid-August, the country's authoritarian leader, Kim Jong Il, has been out of view.

Now fresh uncertainties have arisen with reports that North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong Il, may be seriously ill.

In the TV footage, I found many younger versions of myself among a group of schoolboys in front of a Kim Jong-il statue.

Since Kim Jong-Il is , the Dear Leader travels via a luxurious private train that carries him between on-the-spot-guidance opportunities.

Could Kim Jong Il's regime be the next autocratic government to fall?

Since defecting in 1997, Mr Hwang has infuriated Pyongyang, delivering fiery speeches against the nuclear-armed dictatorship of Kim Jong-il.

Perhaps not approving of North Korea's controversial "Kidnap Everybody Kim Jong Il Thinks is Amusing" policy, Jordan declined.

However, this is still well below the 6. 5m people it was feeding before 2006, when Kim Jong-il's regime clamped down on aid agencies.

"The North Korean people are suffering through a long and brutal national nightmare. I hope the death of Kim Jong-il hastens its end. "

She became estranged from Kim Jong-il after he married Kim Young-sook, who gave birth to one daughter (some say two) but no son.

Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said: "We have to continue to bring pressure on [Kim Jong-Il]. "

Hyun says social instability has increased in North Korea, so leader Kim Jong-il needs to continue to reinforce his domestic power base.

Aspiring nuclear powers, including Iran, will be emboldened by the defiant stance of Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader.

The Prime Minister used to work with Kim Jong Il's father, Kim Il Sung.

"Dear Leader" Kim Jong-il suffered a stroke last August, raising questions as to who would be his successor.

South Korean media say Kim Jong-il's personal train crossed into China at the northeastern Chinese city of Dandong Monday.

Kim Jong-il received the party roles that identified him as his father's successor at a similar meeting in 1980.

North Korean media says leader Kim Jong Il has toured the northeast province where Pyongyang says it plans to launch a satellite soon.

North Korean defector groups say life has got harder since Kim Jong-il died because many markets have closed for official mourning.

Reported that Kim Jong Il after the end of the show to congratulate the cast and performances highly.

Except for the Central Committee, there is not a single leadership organ where all three close relatives of Kim Jong Il hold a post.

The moves comes ahead of Kim Jong Il's expected transfer of power to his son, Kim Jong Eun.

But Kim Jong Il offered no hoped-for concessions Wednesday on nuclear arms and trade issues during a meeting with Russia's president.

His voice has yet to be heard in public (Kim Jong Il's only got an airing 12 years after he emerged as his father's successor).

The plan was to surround Jong-eun with elders, including Kim Jong-il's sister.

Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Kim Jong-il of North Korea are as well.

South Korea has begged Kim Jong Il's regime not to "put a friend in danger" by firing the missile.

It is known that the state ranks the population by its loyalty to the dictator, Kim Jong Il, and about half are "wavering" .

Kim Jong Il and parents are the objects of worship in North Korea's official political ideology.

NORTH KOREA'S ailing dictator, Kim Jong Il, rarely ventures to the airport to greet visiting foreign dignitaries.

North Korea has released photos of its leader, Kim Jong-il, watching a football match.

"Our people are honored to serve the great President Kim Il Sung and the great leader Kim Jong Il, " he added.

Kim Jong-il may fear the fate of the Soviet Union if he follows suit.

When he came to power, Kim Jong Il faced more difficulties than his father ever did.

Yeah that kim jong Il, he is all about Hope and change we can believe in too!

One viewer, under the user name FRwritings, wrote that Kim Jong-il, the northern leader, was "on Twitter to promote his hairdo" .

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il recently visited local factories and enterprises frequently and schools.

It looks like if there's one thing Kim Jong Il can't do, it's convincing his Southern neighbors to answer his friend requests.

Much will depend on the position of Chang Sung Taek, Kim Jong Il's brother-in-law and the second most powerful man in the country.

The North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has expressed condolences to Mr Roh's family, the North's Korean Central News Agency reported.

Some analysts predicted that Kim Jong-il's regime is likely to make new, unrealistic demands.

BeiJing can exert great influence over Kim Jong Il by simply cutting of essential trade, but it most likely won't.

And for more than 10 years before his father's death, Kim Jong Il was portrayed as active in government policy-making.

A high-ranking North Korean official says Kim Jong Il's younger son will succeed his father as leader of the communist nation.

However, a number of reports have emerged about leader Kim Jong Il's emergency contingency plans.

To be sure, Kim Jong Il (or, eventually, Kim Jong Un) could push Seoul too far.

TRUST North Korea's Kim Jong Il to rain nuclear fallout on his neighbours' diplomatic parade.

Kim Jong Il has shown again and again that he isn't the least bit bothered by either.

Self-proclaimed "internet expert" and "Dear Leader" of North Korea, Kim Jong Il, must get bored pretty frequently.

The death of Kim Jong Il thrusts his family and North Korea's ruling elite into a difficult bid to retain power.

It's currently the most tantalising guessing game in global affairs: exactly what is the state of Kim Jong-il's health?

Kim Jong-il in 1959 to high school classmates was Lee Han (Li's younger brother) to play at home, known as Lee Han Hye's sister-in-law.

North Korea brandishes threats as UN debates Cheonan sinking North Korea: What does Kim Jong-il's heir apparent look like?

It's pretty unlikely that we'll see Kim Jong-il and the president of South Korea ever kiss each other on the lips.

They have eased relations with Japan and, horrified by the nuclear brinkmanship of Kim Jong Il, mediated with Korea.

North Korea's Kim Jong-il would have hammered missiles into ploughshares to feed his destitute people.

A funeral for Kim Jong Il is scheduled for Wednesday, but few details have been announced.

KIM JONG IL, North Korea's dictator, has interests in modern technology beyond his dabbling in nuclear weaponry.

"If Kim Jong-il can't communicate with others, her role will be larger, " said Kang Jung-mo, a North Korea expert at Kyung Hee University.

Both reporters reportedly were detained at the camp for criticizing the leadership of Kim Jong-il.

On the left, Kim Jong-il was explaining his thoughts to a senior Chinese leader.

The meeting, called in June, appears in some ways similar to the 1980 event in which Kim Jong Il made his public debut.