Kim Jong Un is the supreme leader of North Korea. A highly centralized communist state, North Korea is also one of the most secretive countries in the world. Kim took power in 2011 after the death of his father. He consolidated his position by often brutal political
maneuvering and developing the country's nuclear weapons capability. Today, the regime maintains a totalitarian dictatorship over the country's population, while Kim enjoys extraordinary cult-like reverence. The West, however, regards him as a threat to the established world order, a view reinforced by North Korea's warm relationships with Russia and China.
To learn more about Kim Jong Un and the iron grip he wields over his people, click on the following gallery.