Kim Yong Nam, North Korea’s former ceremonial head of state and one of the longest-serving figures in the country’s political hierarchy, has died at the age of 97, state media reported on Tuesday.
According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim passed away on Monday from multiple organ failure related to cancer.
The agency described him as an old-generation revolutionary who left extraordinary achievements in the development history of our party and country.
“Comrade Kim Yong-nam, an old-generation revolutionary who left extraordinary achievements in the development history of our party and country, wrapped up his noble life at age of 97,” the KCNA said.
KCNA said that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Kim Yong Nam’s bier early Tuesday to pay his respects, adding that a state funeral has been scheduled for Thursday.
Kim Yong Nam served as president of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly — the country’s nominal head of state — from 1998 until April 2019.
Al Jazeerah reports that though his position was largely ceremonial, he was a constant fixture at major state events and foreign visits, symbolising North Korea’s continuity and loyalty to the ruling Kim dynasty.
Known for his deep, resonant voice and polished speeches laden with propaganda, Kim frequently greeted visiting foreign dignitaries on behalf of the country’s leaders, Kim Jong Il and later Kim Jong Un.
A veteran diplomat and lifelong loyalist, Kim Yong Nam’s career spanned the tenures of all three generations of the Kim family.
He was not related to Kim Jong Un, the country’s current leader and grandson of founder Kim Il Sung.Family games
When Kim Il Sung died in 1994, Kim Yong Nam read the elegy at the founder’s state funeral and later nominated Kim Jong Il to chair the powerful National Defence Commission after the mourning period.
In 2018, Kim Yong Nam led North Korea’s delegation to the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea alongside Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong Un’s sister.
The visit marked a rare moment of diplomatic engagement and made him the highest-ranking North Korean official to visit South Korea in years.
Although his prominence declined in later years, Kim Yong Nam remained a respected elder statesman within the ruling Workers’ Party until his retirement in 2019, when he was succeeded by Choe Ryong Hae.
Born in Pyongyang, Kim Yong Nam studied at Kim Il Sung University and Moscow State University before embarking on a career that placed him at the heart of North Korea’s political establishment for more than half a century.
