Kim Jong Un and the luxurious swimming-pool ship: a symbol of power in impoverished North Korea

A luxury yacht with a swimming pool and water slides – likely belonging to Kim Jong Un – has emerged as a symbol of the gulf between the North Korean elite and the general population, whilst Wonsan is being transformed into a controlled tourist destination

from our correspondent Marco Masciaga

NEW DELHI – Water has been at the forefront of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ’s mind of late. On Saturday, the Pyongyang Navy tested a new torpedo system. On Thursday, a road link with China across the Yalu River was opened. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, a submarine launched two strategic cruise missiles into the Sea of Japan.

In its own way, the summer was no less eventful. Kim seems to have spent a fair amount of time aboard a curious vessel some 80 metres long, 50 metres of which are taken up by a four-lane swimming pool with an elaborate maze of slides at one end. This is reported by the BBC , based on a series of satellite images provided by the specialist company Vantor.

The photographs reveal not only the vessel’s dimensions (thanks to the shots taken whilst it was in winter lay-up at a shipyard), but also its subsequent movements. In early July, for example, the vessel – estimated to have cost tens of millions of dollars – moved off the coast of the Kalma Peninsula, not far from Wonsan , the seaside resort historically associated with the Kim family’s holidays since the time of the family’s founder, Kim Il Sung, the current leader’s grandfather.

According to his biographers and information from intelligence , Wonsan is where Kim Jong Un is said to have spent his childhood with his mother before going to study at a prestigious Swiss boarding school. Today, the Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone is the centrepiece of a project strongly championed by Kim and launched last year to create North Korea’s answer to Benidorm and establish a tourism industry, possibly even attracting tourists from abroad (although for the time being the only foreigners allowed in are Russians, who are effectively prevented from interacting with the local population). Among the souvenirs on sale are model missiles similar to those tested at a nearby military base.

According to experts quoted by the BBC, it is highly unlikely that such an extravagant vessel could belong to anyone outside the country’s leadership, one of the poorest on Earth, where the United Nations estimates that in 2024 the GDP per capita stood at $667 per annum, less than one-fiftieth of that of South Korea. It is impossible to estimate the accumulated wealth of the North Korean elite, but the recent military aid provided to Russia – weapons, ammunition and soldiers to be deployed on the Ukrainian front – is likely to have brought substantial funds into the state coffers.

As North Korea is one of the most secretive states on the planet, it is impossible to trace the vessel back to its owner with any certainty. What is certain is that in recent months, the periods of most intense activity around the ‘swimming pool ship’ – with boats coming and going to transport goods and people – have coincided with periods when Kim did not appear in public.

The existence of such a vessel at Kim’s disposal is also confirmed by the account given years ago by Dennis Rodman . The former NBA star – and childhood idol of the North Korean leader – spent a week as Kim’s guest in 2013, mostly in and around Wonsan. On his return to the West, he spoke, amongst other things, of a vessel tens of metres long that had reminded him of something halfway between a ferry and a Disney cruise ship.

The secrecy surrounding Kim’s holidays is perfectly in line with the narrative put forward by state media , according to which the Supreme Leader is a tireless man who always puts the good of the country before his own needs. Even his visits to the seaside and mountain resorts that have sprung up across the country in recent years are routinely described as ‘field inspections’.

This is a necessity, given that this is what is being asked of ordinary people.

According to accounts from those who have managed to flee the country, North Korean workers rarely have the opportunity or the financial means to take the 14 days’ annual leave to which they are legally entitled. This is partly because it is very unusual to be away from one’s workplace for several consecutive days, and partly because travelling outside one’s city or county of residence requires obtaining special authorisation in advance.

Marco Masciaga Corrispondente da New Delhi Luogo: New Delhi Lingue parlate: Italiano, inglese Argomenti: Asia del Sud Scheda autore Trust project

Marco Masciaga Corrispondente da New Delhi

Lingue parlate: Italiano, inglese

Argomenti: Asia del Sud

Notizie e approfondimenti sugli avvenimenti politici, economici e finanziari.