ANI
24 Apr 2020, 07:48 GMT+10
Washington DC [USA], April 24 (ANI): US President Donald Trump on Thursday (local time) denied reports of North Korea leader Kim Jong-un's serious illness, saying the news is incorrect.
"...I think the report was incorrect. I heard that the network which published the news, used old documents," Trump made the comments in the daily COVID-19 briefing.
"I have a good relationship with North Korea and I have a good relationship with Kim. I hope he is okay," he said.
On Tuesday, Trump had wished Kim well after reports of his poor health surfaced.
"These are reports that came out (about his illness). We do not know. We do not know. Though, I have had a very good relationship with him. I can only say I wish him well. If he is in the kind of condition that the reports say, then it is a very serious condition," Trump said on Tuesday.
On April 15, Kim's absence at his grandfather's birthday celebration had raised speculation about his well-being. He had been seen four days before that at a government meeting, according to intelligence reports cited by CNN.
Meanwhile, South Korea responded by saying that it did not see any unusual signs suggesting that the North Korean leader is ill.
"There is nothing unusual going on in North Korea. It's not true," a government official was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday.
Kim's absences from official state media often spark speculation and rumours about his health. North Korea has no free press and is often a black hole when it comes to the country's leadership.
Analysts are heavily reliant on scanning state media dispatches and watching propaganda videos for any semblance of a clue. (ANI)Get a daily dose of North Korea Times news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to North Korea Times.
More InformationMADRID, Spain: Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota and his younger brother, André Silva, have died in a car accident in Spain. Spanish...
LONDON, U.K.: An unrelenting heatwave sweeping across Europe has pushed early summer temperatures to historic highs, triggering deadly...
President Donald Trump's plans to build a space-based Golden Dome missile defense shield have drawn immediate criticism from China,...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Paramount has agreed to pay US$16 million to settle a lawsuit brought by U.S. President Donald Trump over...
LONDON, U.K.: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer won a vote in Parliament this week to move ahead with changes to the country's welfare...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday. President...
FRANKLIN, Tennessee: Hundreds of thousands of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles are being recalled across the United States due to a potential...
REDMOND, Washington: Microsoft is the latest tech giant to announce significant job cuts, as the financial strain of building next-generation...
LONDON UK - U.S. stock markets were closed on Friday for Independence Day. Global Forex Markets Wrap Up Friday with Greeback Comeback...
SANTA CLARA, California: Nvidia came within a whisker of making financial history on July 3, briefly surpassing Apple's all-time market...
SACRAMENTO, California: California's multibillion-dollar farms are facing a growing crisis—not from drought or pests, but from a sudden...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump says the United States could soon reach a trade deal with India. He believes this deal would...