Kim Jong-un Climbs Mount Paektu on Horseback

Kim Jong-un has climbed North Korea’s highest mountain, Mount Paektu, on horseback, according to state media.

A series of photos released by KCNA show the North Korean leader astride a white horse on a snow-covered mountain.

This is not the first time Kim Jong-un has scaled the 2,750-meter peak and analysts say such gestures have been known to precede major announcements.

Mount Paektu holds a special place in North Korea’s identity and is feted as the birthplace of Kim Jong-un’s father.

A KCNA report released on October 16 said: “His march on horseback in Mt Paektu is a great event of weighty importance in the history of the Korean revolution.

“Sitting on the horseback atop Mt Paektu, [he] recollected with deep emotion the road of arduous struggle he covered for the great cause of building the most powerful country, with faith and will as firm as Mt Paektu.”

In 2017, Kim Jong-un visited the mountain a few weeks before his New Year’s address, where he hinted at a diplomatic thaw with South Korea.

The North Korean leader has reportedly climbed Mount Paektu at least three times, and made a joint visit to the mountain with South Korean president Moon Jae-in in 2018.

Kim Jong-un climbs Mount Paektu

KCNA previously released photos of Kim Jong-un atop the mountain, after apparently climbing it in black leather shoes.

Mount Paektu, an active volcano, is said to be the birthplace of Dangun, the founder of the first Korean kingdom more than 4,000 years ago.

The mountain is hundreds of kilometers from the capital Pyongyang, and sits right on the border between North Korea and China.

Earlier this month, North Korean officials held talks with US officials in Sweden, the first since President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un met briefly at the DMZ in June.