Kim Jong-il’s Life in Photos
North Korea’s leader died after suffering a heart attack while on a train ride. See photos of his life.
AFP / Getty Images
North Korea’s controversial leader died after suffering a heart attack while on a train ride Saturday. See his life in photos.
AFP / Getty Images
Undated
Kim Jong-Il takes part of a souvenir picture during his childhood with his parents, Kim Jong-suk, right, and leader Kim Il-sung.
Korean Central News Agency / Korea News Service via AP Images
1980
Kim Jong-il attends at the first meeting of the Sixth Central Committee of North Korean Workers’ Party. He was named Politburo Presidium member and a member of the Central Military Commission at the meeting.
Korean Central News Agency / Korea News Service via AP Images
1988
Kim Jong-il meets with Korean People’s Army personnel.
AFP / Getty Images
1992
Kim Jong-il stands on the tarmac at Pyongyang Airport following a visit by then-Chinese President Yang Shangkun.
AFP / Getty Images
1999
Kim Jong-il waves to a military parade to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK).
AFP / Getty Images
2000
South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and Kim Jong-il are all smiles as they raise their arms together at the signing ceremony of a joint agreement for cooperation between the two Koreas upon concluding the second day of summit meetings in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital.
Getty Images
2000
Kim Jong-il toasts U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in Pyongyang.
Chien-min Chung / AFP / Getty Images
2001
Chinese President Jiang Zemin poses with Kim Jong-il in Beijing.
AFP / Getty Images
2001
Kim Jong-il has a conference with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Korean Central News Agency / Korea News Service via AP Images
2001
Chinese President Jiang Zemin is greeted by Kim Jong-il at the Pyongyang airport.
AFP / Getty Images
2007
South Korea's President Roh Moo-hyun is greeted by Kim Jong-il during a welcoming ceremony in the capital Pyongyang. North and South Korea were proclaimed as separate nations in 1948, three years after the peninsula was divided between U.S. and Soviet zones of influence.
STR / AFP / Getty Images
2009
Kim Jong-il and high-ranking North Korean officials sit in front of a giant red flag with an image of his father, late Kim Il-sung during a gathering at an auditorium in Pyongyang to mark the 15th anniversary of the death of the country’s founder.
Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service / AP Photo
2010
Kim talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao during his visit to China.
Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service / AP Photo
2010
Kim Jong-il (front row, second from right) poses with senior officials of the Workers’ Party, including a man believed to be his third son, Jong-un (left), Vice Marshal Ri Yong-ho, and Kim Yong-nam (right), Kim Jong-il's long-serving No. 2, in Pyongyang.
Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service / AP Photo
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev shakes hands with Kim Jong-il, at a military garrison outside the capital city of Ulan-Ude, Buryatia.
Dmitry Astakhov / RIA Novosti / AP Photo
North Korean senior leader Kim Jong-il (right) with his son and heir, Kim Jong-un, in Pyongyang in October 2010.
Yao Dawei / Newscom
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.