South Korean officials are emphasising they have detected no unusual movements in North Korea and are cautioning against reports its leader Kim Jong-un may be ill or is being isolated because of coronavirus concerns.
At a closed door forum on Sunday, South Korea's Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul, who oversees engagement with the North, said the government has the intelligence capabilities to say with confidence that there were no indications of anything unusual.
Rumours and speculation over the North Korean leader's health began after he failed to make a public appearance at a key state holiday on April 15, and has since remained out of sight.
South Korea media last week reported that Kim may have undergone cardiovascular surgery or was in isolation to avoid exposure to the coronavirus.
Unification Minister Kim cast doubt on the report of surgery, arguing that the hospital mentioned did not have the capabilities for such an operation.
Still, Yoon Sang-hyun, chairman of the foreign and unification committee in South Korea's National Assembly, told a gathering of experts on Monday that Kim Jong-un's absence from the public eye suggests "he has not been working as normally".
"There has not been any report showing he's making policy decisions as usual since April 11, which leads us to assume that he is either sick or being isolated because of coronavirus concerns," Yoon said.
North Korea has said it has no confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, but some international experts have cast doubt on that claim.
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in vowed on Monday to step up cooperation to help the North prevent the spread of the coronavirus but made no mention of Kim's health or whereabouts.
On Monday, North Korean state media once again showed no new photos of Kim nor reported on his whereabouts.
However, they did carry reports that he had sent a message of gratitude to workers building a tourist resort in Wonsan, an area where some South Korean media reports have said Kim may be staying.
Kim Jong-un in 2012 during a mass military parade to celebrate the centenary of the birth of his grandfather, national founder Kim Il Sung. Source: KCNA via KNS
"Our government position is firm," Moon Chung-in, a top foreign policy adviser to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, said in comments to US news outlets.
"Kim Jong-un is alive and well. He has been staying in the Wonsan area since April 13. No suspicious movements have so far been detected."
Kim Byung-kee, a former intelligence official and now a member of South Korea's parliamentary intelligence committee, also urged caution on speculation and said there is little possibility that Kim is ill and he would make a "surprise comeback soon."
Satellite images from last week showed a special train possibly belonging to Kim at Wonsan, lending weight to those reports, according to 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea monitoring project.
Last week, China dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on Kim Jong-un, according to three people familiar with the situation.
When asked about the medical team, China's foreign ministry said it has no information to offer on Kim.
