Jump to full article: Agence France Presse (AFP) (fr), 2007-07-24
Intro: North Korea has imposed a smoking ban at all venues used by its leader Kim Jong-Il after doctors advised him to stop smoking and drinking, a former South Korean lawmaker said Tuesday.
The doctors urged Kim to quit after he underwent a heart operation, said Jang Sung-Min, an associate of former South Korean president Kim Dae-Jung who held a historic summit with Kim Jong-Il in 2000.
"A Chinese diplomat who has close relations with the North Koreans told me by telephone that doctors had asked Chairman Kim Jong-Il to quit smoking and drinking," Jang told AFP. . . .
"The Chinese diplomat said Kim looked thin mainly because he could not smoke and drink," Jang said.
Several accounts portray Kim as a former chain-smoker and a cognac-guzzling playboy with an appetite for fine dining.
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