Kremlin reporter Alexander Yunashev released a video on 3/9 showing two staff members from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's entourage meticulously cleaning a room at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, where Kim met and held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin for over two hours.
A North Korean male staffer carefully wiped down the chair and the edge of the table where Kim sat, while a female attendant collected the cups and everything else Kim had used during the meeting.
"After the meeting ended, the North Korean leader's aides carefully removed all traces of Kim's presence," the reporter said.
Observers believe this practice is to maintain absolute secrecy regarding Kim's health and biological traces during his trips abroad.
Japan's Nikkei newspaper, citing South Korean and Japanese intelligence agencies, reported that, as in previous trips, Kim's entourage brought a private toilet on the armored train that took him to Beijing.
Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert at the US-based Stimson Center, said such measures have been in place since the time of Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un's father.
"The use of a special toilet and separate trash bags for debris, waste, and cigarette butts is to ensure that foreign intelligence agencies, even those from friendly nations, cannot collect samples. Such items, including hair and dead skin cells, can provide information about Kim's health," Madden said.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un meet in Beijing on 3/9. Photo: AFP |
In 2018, during a meeting between Kim and then-South Korean President Moon Jae-in, North Korean security personnel sprayed disinfectant on the furniture and wiped it clean before Kim sat down.
Before the 2023 summit between the North Korean leader and Putin, Kim's security team also wiped down chairs with disinfectant and conducted thorough checks to ensure safety. One of Kim Jong-un's bodyguards even used a metal detector to check the chairs.
Huyen Le (According to Reuters)
