What does Kim Jong Un’s watch tell us about how his lifespan and global politics?

Nick Kenyon

Kim Jong Un is the leader of North Korea and understandably has a lot on his plate. From United States offers to meet and discuss his nuclear program to the issue of food running low throughout his kingdom, he doesn’t have the time to slowly and carefully select his watch every morning, so he wears the same one every day. But while his agenda may be a busy one, there doesn’t seem to be enough on Kim Jong Un’s actual plate, with recent images of his watch strap appearing to show he has lost a significant amount of weight. Enough to suggest he may even be struggling with a potential health condition.

The favourite watch of Kim Jong Un is the IWC Portofino Automatic, a classic expression of a time and date dress watch. What does it have to do with his health? Images compared by NK News show that Kim Jong Un’s watch strap has been tightened several notches in the months since November 2020. If that it is due to poor health then it’s cause for concern to the region, according to Vipin Narang, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Associate Professor of Political Science.

“If [the sudden weight loss] is due to a health condition, the jockeying for his succession may already be happening behind the scenes, and that volatility could be trouble for the outside world,” suggests Narang.

NK News also spoke with Mike Brodka, a U.S. Special Operations Command intelligence officer in South Korea who explained further that, “On the surface, noticeable weight loss may not mean much, but it can provide clues to other information that intelligence collectors look for.”

It’s a frightening thought that a slightly tighter watch strap might suggest the destabilisation of a region that already has strained relationships with multiple countries around the world. But it just might. This wristy business of Kim Jong Un may yet have major implications for international relations.