♪
PETRAEUS: Kim Jong-Un is the sun around which all else revolves in North Korea.
He has proven to be a vicious leader,
not in the least reluctant to take very swift
and very harsh action against those who are a threat to the state,
which means a threat to him.
NARRATOR: Age just 28, Kim Jong-Un became the leader of his country,
only the third man to rule North Korea.
He took over his father's nuclear weapons program and supercharged it.
MADDEN: The accomplishments in terms of ballistic missiles
and nuclear weapons in North Korea...
that is a result of Kim Jong-Un's characteristics as leader.
And he far exceeded the lifetime accomplishments of his father and grandfather.
POST: You really can't understand this man without understanding the family into
which he was born, and the impact of his grandfather upon him.
LEE: To sit down with the U.S. President...
that's something his father and his grandfather never were able to do.
NARRATOR: In charge of the world's 4th largest army, who is Kim Jong-Un?
This is the story of how the youngest Kim took control of his country,
and used his family's legacy to put himself onto the world stage.
[crying].
The sudden death of Kim Jong-Il, the second man to lead the country rocked the
North Korean people.
The future of this rogue state was now a global concern...
and had become top priority for the then director of the CIA.
PETRAEUS: What I recall in particular was the uncertainty.
What will Kim Jong-Un be like as a leader?
He is quite young, late twenty-something, untested,
said to be impulsive,
said to be a bit headstrong.
What will he do with respect to the nuclear program, the missile program?
So all of these factors together give you considerable pause,
and that's certainly how we felt at that time.
NARRATOR: North Korea was a unique state.
A communist country, but under the rule of one family.
It was founded by Kim Jong-Un's grandfather, who outlasted every other
communist dictator, before handing over to his eldest son, Kim Jong-Un's father.
His untimely death at the age of 70 meant there was little succession planning,
before the third Kim was thrust into power.
The CIA wanted to know who he was.
PETRAEUS: Footage like this is always looked at and studied; and the analysts
were pouring over it, trying to divine something out of it.
But there was no real solid basis...
I mean trying to do a psychoanalysis of someone like this,
about whom we had such few details, was almost mission impossible.
NARRATOR: One reason the intelligence agency files were lacking in detail was that
Kim Jong-Un was not always the obvious successor.
His father had five known children, one of whom was a daughter,
but no known photographs of her exist.
His youngest child was also a daughter...
but North Korea wasn't ready for a female leader.
Of the three known sons,
Kim Jong-Nam was the eldest and once seemed like a good option.
REPORTER: Are you Mister Kim Jong-Nam?
JONG-NAM: If you are not sure, why you follow me?
NARRATOR: In the early 2000s, he left North Korea for China,
a move that put him out of contention.
The next son, Kim Jong-Chul, had no interest in politics,
preferring to play guitar in a band.
REPORTER: Why are you in London please Mr. Kim?
NARRATOR: He's a reclusive figure but has since been spotted abroad,
attending rock concerts.
REPORTER [over TV]: This is believed to be Kim Jong-Chol.
He's seen smiling, as he enjoys an Eric Clapton concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.
NARRATOR: Which left Kim Jong-Un.
On paper, the third in line for the throne,
and the only option to continue the family dynasty.
LEE: My first impression was how vulnerable he was.
But I did wonder: is that grief tinged with fear?
It's not like it's taking over leadership of a country that is rich,
and surrounded by creature comforts.
This is a country that has chronic food shortage, doesn't have much electricity,
is isolated from the outside world.
It's not an easy job to take on.
I was the first American journalist accredited to work in the local
Pyongyang press corps,
and I was able to talk to North Koreans about what they were being told about who
this young man was or at least in terms of the propaganda.
[cheering].
We were told that Kim Jong-Un would be very different from his father;
more like his grandfather, who was legitimately loved by his people,
and extremely charismatic by all accounts.
He wanted to show the people that he was a people person, like his grandfather.
And so, he would often get down on the ground and bring children into his lap and
bring them into his arms and that's very strategic:
to mold him in the image of his grandfather.
He does happen to look a lot like his grandfather, and so that helps.
But adding all the accessories: the straw hat, which is identical to the
straw hat that the grandfather wore; kind of replicating the gait.
North Koreans are going to remember that.
So that's a way that Kim Jong-Un piggy-backs on his grandfather's legacy,
to legitimize his role as the leader.
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Un was keen to use the god-like status enjoyed by his father and
grandfather, but he wanted to be a god for the 21st century.
Showing the North Korean people, a sense of modernity.
LEE: His campaign to show that he was a different kind of leader also included bringing
his wife out into the public.
That was so significant because his father was very rarely out in the public;
we didn't know who his wife was because he never presented his family.
And so now they had Kim Jong-Un's wife, she was beautiful, elegant.
And that's actually powerful in a society like this, that meant that the people were
encouraged to show a little bit more individualism.
NARRATOR: Some of the intelligence agencies put this kind of modern openness down
to Kim's formative years outside North Korea.
In his early teens, he spent nine years at school in Switzerland.
After Kim Jong-Un became leader, media interest focused on this time,
with news agencies quick to interview his former classmates for any kind of insight.
-Most of the time he was shy, not loud; a quiet guy.
But when we played basketball, he came up, he could be very aggressive but in a positive
way, and loud, and a little bit of trash-talk.
NARRATOR: According to his minders in Switzerland, he was so obsessed with the
Chicago Bulls that he slept with a basketball by his side.
LEE: I think we're all very curious to know how much Kim Jong-Un's time in Switzerland
has shaped who he is, because we would think that that would expose
him more to Western ideas.
Pretty early on in his reign we started to see that.
It's interesting, he had his own personal pop group,
this girl band called the Moranbong Aktan.
And it was all the buzz in Pyongyang at the time and these girls were wearing these
really revealing dresses, you know like, strapless, really short mini-skirts,
and playing these electric instruments.
We heard them playing the theme song to Rocky, which is a very American movie.
So, really fresh, really modern, very, for North Korea, very cutting edge.
-Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un!
NARRATOR: Kim kept the same military parades established by his father and grandfather,
but he used his power to indulge some of his own personal interests.
In 2013, he asked for one of his heroes to come and see him.
RODMAN: My name is Dennis Rodman.
Used to play basketball for the Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, L.A. Lakers.
Done movies. Wrote books.
REPORTER [over TV]: It's a great cover and quite a title: I Should Be Dead By Now.
RODMAN: You name it, I've done it.
-Yeah!
RODMAN: I'm that guy, Dennis Rodman.
I had no clue about North Korea.
I guess something came up in 2013.
Something about that the leader of North Korea wanted to meet someone from the
Chicago Bulls and I got wind later that they asked Michael Jordan first,
and he said no, he didn't want to go.
So, I guess I was the second option; and they said,
'Dennis, would you like to go North Korea?'
I said, 'Yeah, sure.' I wasn't worried.
I was just pretending like I was going to Vegas.
One of my crazy wild trips you know, hanging out with a couple of hookers or whores or
something, you know hanging out in the pool, you know, thinking I'm going to do some
real cool [bleep] you know.
So, it's like, okay, let me add this to my resume.
That was my whole idea right there.
Just go and play basketball, that was it, shake some hands, take some pictures: done.
I was in for a really big shock.
NARRATOR: Former NBA star Dennis Rodman was about to participate in the
strangest away match of his entire career.
RODMAN: I walked in on the stadium and then one of the, one of the leaders said...
I'm like, 'What's going on?'
He said, "Well, why don't you come and sit over here.'
I said, 'Okay, great.'
So I still have no clue, no clue what's [bleep] going on.
That's when the people start to stand up and start to clap.
And I'm thinking they clapping for me.
So I'm saying, I'm thinking like I'm as cool as [bleep], right.
I realize, I look to my left, I'm like oh, that's who they clapping for?
And I still don't know who this guy is.
Oh I know this. I said... oh, that's crazy.
Wow, that brings you back a little bit, that says how powerful this guy is.
And this right here went on for 10, 15 minutes.
And I'm sitting there doing the same thing.
I'm thinking like, 'What the [bleep] am I clapping for?
So I'm an American, I'm like, 'I don't know what the hell I'm doing!'
So it's like, alright, well I might as well just join in.
And I was just at awe to see these people crying.
I've seen a lot of weird things in my life, I've seen a lot of people,
I've seen presidents, I've seen a lot of stuff but that right there blew me away.
That's when I finally sort of realized what's going on.
-Team on three. One, two, three, yeah.
RODMAN: Once the game started then he started just to talk to me.
I don't know what the hell he's saying.
You know he's talking in, you know, Korean.
He just went on and on about basketball the whole game.
We kept talking the whole game.
I think that he is such a fan of basketball in America
and he's such a great supporter of the Chicago Bulls.
And we just pretty much hit it off like that and we just talked, we laughed,
and he said, 'Whatever you want it's yours, you know.' And the interpreter was
saying, 'Wow, Dennis, you're one of the very few people ever to come to our country,
and I think you're one of the very few people to ever sit beside our leader.
For some reason he actually likes you.'
You guys have been very, very kind to me,
and to my compadres from America, sir, thank you.
You're a friend for life.
Now I'm getting to feel like I'm getting comfortable now and we're just having a good
time, like we've been best friends for years.
And he asked me, he said, 'Dennis, please please please come back anytime.
I want you to come back as much as you can.'
I said, 'Okay, great, okay, I'll come back every three months.'
And he said, 'Yeah, do that!'
REPORTER [over TV]: Dennis Rodman is back in North Korea.
And he'll meet with his friend, the dictator Kim Jong-Un.
-Mr. Rodman is on a private trip.
Our views about North Korea have not changed.
RODMAN: Look I'm not a president, I'm not a politician.
He's just more like you, or him, or anybody.
He just wants to let his hair down, whatever, great, cool.
One day, and we're sitting outside smoking cigars, drinking tequila,
vodka and I think that's the first time he asked me about he would love to come to America.
He said I would love to come to America to watch a basketball game.
I said, 'What game you wanna see?'
He said, 'I want to go to the Madison Square Garden building.'
He kept saying it over and over: 'Madison Square Garden building'.
He kept doing his hands like that, you know.
I said, 'You can do anything you want.
He said, 'I would love to go but I can't.'
And he said, 'Well, you know, because people don't like me.'
And I'm like wow.
-How was your trip?
RODMAN: It was awesome man.
-Awesome. Kim, Kim Jong-Un. How awesome was it?
RODMAN: I'll be coming back in about a week!
REPORTER [over TV]: Is Dennis Rodman the man right now who knows more about
Kim Jong-Un than any American?
-He is that man, there is nobody at the CIA who could tell you more
personally about Kim Jong-Un than Dennis Rodman.
And that, in itself, is scary.
♪ RODMAN: Happy Birthday to you. ♪
♪ Happy Birthday to you. ♪
♪ Happy Birthday dear Marshall. ♪
♪ Happy birthday to you. ♪
NARRATOR: Rodman's visit to Pyongyang fulfilled
a childhood dream for Kim Jong-Un.
[shouting in Korean].
But being an all-powerful dictator of the most secretive state on
earth was not without its challenges.
Generals at the heart of the regime were trying to outmaneuver the young Kim,
in an effort to topple the inexperienced leader.
But Kim Jong-Un was about to show that he was just as ruthless as
any Kim had been before.
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Un is a 21st century dictator.
He's happy to embrace certain kinds of progress,
but retaining complete control is fundamental,
as is loyalty from his inner sanctum.
LEE: One of the things I pushed for when I was working as a journalist in
North Korea, was to be allowed into a private or closed meeting.
I wanted to see what things were like behind closed doors.
And you get to see a lot more than they show you on TV.
They know that when the song comes in for Kim Jong-Un, that they have to leap up
and start cheering.
But one of the things I noticed then, and it really struck me,
was that somebody did not jump up and clap the way that everybody else did.
And this was noticeable.
Jang Song-Thaek just stayed seated.
NARRATOR: Jang Song-Thaek was Kim Jong-Un's uncle.
In the early 1970s, he married Kim Kyong-Hui, the only sister of Kim Jong-Un's father.
He had joined the Kim's family firm; and thanks to his unrivalled access
to the Kim's, he became one of the regime's most powerful figures.
LEE: He was almost always right behind Kim Jong-Un's shoulder whenever
I saw Kim Jong-Un.
He's an interesting person.
He had been educated in Russia.
So he had been exposed to the outside world quite a bit.
He also had good relations with China so he's somebody who had built
a lot of connections to the outside world.
And that may have been seen by Kim Jong-Un
as suspicious and threatening.
NARRATOR: Uncle Jang continued to travel to and from China.
But in December 2013, at a governmental meeting in Pyongyang,
he realized that his role within the party was over.
NARRATOR: An article in the state newspaper listed crimes
like gambling state funds,
embezzlement, and even adultery.
Jang wasn't allowed to mount a defense.
This was a show trial, and the judges made a swift decision.
REPORTER [over TV]: Kim Jong-Un's uncle has been executed.
TODD [over TV]: The official North Korean news agency report on this, called him,
quote: 'despicable human scum, and worse than a dog.'
LEE: It certainly sent not only a chill through me, but I know it sent a chill through
the elites of North Korea.
And it was meant to serve as an example that no-one's untouchable.
NARRATOR: Kim marked the execution with a new song, performed by North Korea's
favorite girl-band.
BAEK: Every image, everything that people are exposed to is just crafted.
There are hired artists, hired musicians, who are supported by the government to produce
artwork, music, poetry, all to support the larger narrative.
North Korea's the greatest country in the world, and the Kim Dynasty is the gods that
are leading the North Korean people.
NARRATOR: Kim wanted his people to buy in to the new vision of
a 21st century North Korea.
But it wasn't really optional.
Expressing any doubts in Kim, or the regime, or attempting to contact the outside world
would be a fatal error.
In the early years of Kim's reign, the rate of public executions tripled.
BAEK: In the executions, they're shot three times, usually in the head, chest, gut.
BAEK: They're tied up so they can't you know run around or flail, but the idea is,
if someone is shot, especially in the stomach, you just, you fold over.
BAEK: Some of my North Korean friends who have seen executions say it's just crazy,
that even in the moment of death, a North Korean person is forced to bow to the state.
BAEK: From the moment someone is born, to the moment that someone is killed
it's all in the name of the Kim family.
LEE: There is a story in ancient Korean history that most Koreans will know,
that is the story of the first king of the Joseon dynasty.
He had a number of sons.
When it came time for him to hand power, he picked one son and that triggered a rivalry,
one of them ended up killing the other.
This parable is known as the Hamheung-chasa.
When I heard that story it just kind of sent chills up my spine because I thought,
this history of brothers vying for the throne,
of fratricide within the royal family,
is a part of their ancient history.
NARRATOR: The Kim family was about to add a 21st century chapter to the fabled stories
of the Korean dynasties.
Kim Jong-Un had an older half-brother, Kim Jong-Nam.
He was their father's first son, and a man never afraid to speak his mind.
MADDEN: I became interested in North Korea about ten years ago,
developed a specialty in North Korean politics,
collecting information and there's a lot of people with skin in
the North Korea game, and I'm in touch with them.
JONG-NAM: I think it's a very ridiculous question.
REPORTER: Ah okay, sorry sorry.
MADDEN: Kim Jong-Nam had studied in Europe for about ten years,
and he had absorbed certain aspects of Western culture that are not necessarily in
line with North Korea's political priorities.
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Nam used a fake passport to travel the world,
but was caught entering japan on his way to Tokyo Disneyland.
A major embarrassment for the family, and the start of a bitter rift.
MADDEN: Kim Jong-Nam started living outside of North Korea in the early 2000s.
Now that didn't prevent Kim Jong-Nam from having a certain power base and having ties to
other North Korean elites, but it does, you know, it does eliminate him from the day to
day grind of the North Korean regime, and if you're going to become a successor you can't
be that removed from it.
[inaudible].
NARRATOR: As the eldest child, Kim Jong-Nam often aired his views on North Korea
and its future.
From a new base in China, he spoke to journalists.
He made sure that the location was hidden so his whereabouts were unknown.
NARRATOR: In 2011, Kim Jong-Nam agreed to an in-depth interview,
in the Asian gambling capital, Macau.
NARRATOR: Their correspondence continued over email.
Kim Jong-Nam was clearly not in favor of perpetuating the Kim dynasty.
So when Kim Jong-Un became leader, the correspondence gained significance,
and Gomi asked permission to publish their private emails.
NARRATOR: Later that year, South Korean intelligence claimed to have intercepted
a memo written by Kim Jong-Un.
CCTV footage showed Kim Jong-Nam arriving at Kuala lumper airport,
and entering the departures hall.
Two women come out of nowhere, each with separate elements of the VX nerve agent on them.
They both rub their hands on his face, combining the chemicals,
and creating a deadly poison.
In distress, Kim Jong-Nam appeals for help,
but just minutes later, he's dead.
REPORTER [over TV]: South Korea said it is highly likely the North was behind this
cloak-and-dagger type killing.
LEE: We don't know if this was an order that was issued by Kim Jong-Un.
But it was very clear that he found his brother's presence to be a nuisance.
NARRATOR: The assassination of his half-brother, didn't necessarily stop criticism
from within the Kim family.
REPORTER [over TV]: Nearly a month after the half-brother of North Korea's dictator was
poisoned to death in Kuala Lumpur airport, this video emerged showing the murdered
man's son, Kim Han Sol.
HAN SOL: My name's Kim Han Sol, uh, from North Korea.
Part of the Kim family.
Here's my passport.
LEE: He is in his early 20s, has his whole life ahead of him,
very promising from all we can tell and from those around him,
but perhaps is going to be on the run for the rest of his life.
Because he does pose a potential challenge to that throne.
He is a member of the Kim family and he does have the bloodline.
HAN SOL: My father has been killed a few days ago.
I'm currently with my mother and my sister.
And um we hope this gets better soon, yeah.
NARRATOR: The assassination of his half-brother and the execution of his uncle meant
that Kim Jong-Un could now make some changes to his inner circle.
He brought in his younger sister,
and gave her a pivotal role in the party's politburo.
The young leader's next move was to raise his profile on the global stage.
He achieved this with a number of missile launches,
showing the regime's growing military capabilities.
REPORTER [over TV]: North Korea launched a long rang rocket....
REPORTER [over TV]: One more rocket launched in this weekend's barrage...
COREN [over TV]: This is North Korea showing the United States that it is
a force to be reckoned with.
NARRATOR: Kim was baiting America.
This was a move straight out of the family playbook.
But for Kim Jong-Un this tactic appeared to be backfiring.
OBAMA: North Korea's continued pursuit of nuclear weapons is a path that leads only
to more isolation, it's not a sign of strength.
NARRATOR: Just when it seemed that Kim Jong-Un had taken North Korea
into the diplomatic wilderness...
-USA! USA! USA!
NARRATOR: A new kind of politician entered the fray.
TRUMP: One of the papers called the other day.
And they said: "Would you speak to the leader of North Korea?"
I said, "Absolutely why not, why not?"
Who the hell cares, I'll speak to anybody!
-Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un!
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Un had spent his first five years in charge purging his
inner sanctum of dissenting voices.
-Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un! Kim Jong-Un!
NARRATOR: He then turned his attention to the international stage.
REPORTER [over TV]: Good Morning America.
The most stunning upset in American history:
Donald J. Trump elected the 45th President of the United States.
-USA! USA! USA! USA!
TRUMP: If you look at North Korea, this guy, this, ma, I mean he's like a maniac.
And you gotta give him credit.
How many young guys, and you know it's pretty amazing when you think of it,
how does he do that, he goes and he takes over and he's the boss.
He wiped out the uncle, he wiped out this one, that one,
I mean this guy doesn't play games.
[speaking in Korean].
REPORTER [over TV]: North Korea's first missile launch on President Trump's watch.
NARRATOR: The early months of Trump's presidency were punctuated by
a series of launches, culminating on Independence Day
with the test of a rocket capable of reaching Alaska.
[singing in Korean].
NARRATOR: The regime called the launch 'a gift to the American bastards'.
TRUMP: The United States has great strength and patience.
But if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but
to totally destroy North Korea.
Rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself, and for his regime.
NARRATOR: While Trump laid down the law,
North Korea was about to reach a crucial milestone.
REPORTER [over TV]: The new threat from North Korea: they have tested a powerful
new missile; experts say it could reach the entire U.S. mainland.
[speaking in Korean].
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Un released a statement,
saying his nuclear missile program was complete.
He was ready to talk.
He began by visiting his South Korean counterpart.
After a successful summit, he then managed to broker
a meeting in Singapore with President Trump.
LEE: Just remember that when we first saw him in 2010 and 2011 he was just this
fresh-faced, baby-faced young man that no one knew.
Didn't have a whole lot of credibility.
He is now a leader who has a verifiably threatening nuclear arsenal.
That puts him in a very different position when it comes to negotiating and
interacting with other countries.
RODMAN: I knew things were gonna change.
I knew it, I was the only one, but I never had no one to hear me.
I got so many death threats, but I was sitting there protecting everything and I
believe in North Korea.
But today is a great day for everybody: Singapore, Tokyo, China, everything.
It's a great day!
LEE: The way the North Koreans will be looking at it is:
this tiny country with so little.
TRUMP: Thank you very much.
LEE: Is so important that their leader is able to sit down with
the President of the United States.
That's something his father and his grandfather never were able to do.
[inaudible].
TRUMP: Very good. Very, very good.
Excellent relationship, thank you, thank you very much.
NARRATOR: Kim Jong-Un had achieved a massive coup, persuading the leader of the
free world to sit down and meet him on equal terms.
For over 70 years, the grandfather, father and son
have convinced the North Korean people that they are gods.
BAEK: For Kim Jong-Un the country's Achilles heel is its citizens
accessing foreign information.
-How much for a DVD?
BAEK: And so the more and more citizens listen and read and watch foreign media,
and the more and more they're starting to question their reality in North Korea,
the more they question the political legitimacy of the state.
It puts Kim-Jong Un in a very dangerous position.
If people stop believing that these are Gods, that is pretty much eroding the single
foundational belief for this country.
Once that political legitimacy is eroded, then he has nothing to stand on.
♪
NARRATOR: For over 70 years, the Kim family have literally kept their people in the dark.
The most secretive state on earth remains cut off from the outside world.
The Hermit Kingdom, still under the rule of one family.
♪
Captioned by Cotter Captioning Services.