US NK News "Kim Jong-un's leisure boat spotted near Wonsan... High possibility of stay"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] U.S. media outlets reported, based on satellite images, that North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un is staying in Wonsan, Gangwon Province. Foreign media cited the fact that Kim's exclusive train was spotted stopped near a villa in Wonsan in the satellite images, and that leisure boats from the villa have been consistently operating this month as evidence.

On the 28th (local time), U.S. NK News reported, based on satellite images near Kim's Wonsan villa, that "the boats frequently used by Kim Jong-un along the Wonsan coast have been operating throughout this month," adding, "This indicates that Kim Jong-un is in Wonsan."

Earlier, between the 30th of last month and the 2nd of this month, a 55-meter leisure boat traveling between Wonsan and the nearby island Daedo was captured docked in satellite images. Since the 2nd of this month, movements of cranes and small vessels have also been observed in this area.

NK News also mentioned that the movements of these boats, including this month, are closely related to times when Kim Jong-un appeared in the area. For example, since the summer of 2016, satellite images have captured these boats departing, and out of a total of 17 occasions when Kim Jong-un stayed in Wonsan or nearby, 11 coincided with these boat movements, according to NK News.

The North Korea-focused media outlet 38 North also supports this assumption. 38 North reported that Kim Jong-un's exclusive train stopped at a train station in Wonsan, where his villa is located, at least since the 21st of this month.

Meanwhile, NK News analyzed that a 50-meter leisure boat that was at Daedo was moved to the villa on the 14th, coinciding with the date North Korea conducted missile tests nearby. North Korea launched several projectiles in the morning of the 14th in the Munchon area. Our military assessed these as cruise missiles presumed to be anti-ship missiles.

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