Lee Il-gyu, a former North Korean diplomat who defected in 2023, has detailed the rigid protocols required for anyone granted an audience with Kim Jong-un.
The ex-official, who claims seven face-to-face encounters with the North Korean leader, revealed the rules in a collaborative YouTube video for Dimple Video and The NK Guys. Il-gyu, who served as a senior diplomat since 1999 and rose to deputy director for political affairs at the North Korean embassy in Cuba, fled with his wife and children in November 2023. He cited frustration with the regime, unfair workplace treatment, and authorities blocking his family’s medical treatment abroad as reasons for his defection.
Since arriving in South Korea, Il-gyu has provided rare firsthand accounts of life inside the isolated nation. His most recent disclosures center on what he describes as a month-long specialist training regimen mandatory for anyone meeting the supreme leader. “The most basic ones cover speech and conduct. So don’t fidget, don’t sway, no unnecessary movements. And don’t look Kim Jong-un directly in the face for any length of time. And if he turns and comes your way, step aside politely,” he explained in the translated video.
The training extends to every physical and verbal interaction. “Don’t scramble or panic. Move aside politely and carry yourself with composure. And as for speaking, before Kim Jong-un asks you a question, you must never speak to him on your own initiative or volunteer any show of excitement. Absolutely not,” Il-gyu continued. He emphasized that responses must be stripped of any personal flourish: “You answer only when he asks, and that answer can’t be like the way I’m talking now, rambling on with unnecessary detail. Short, concise, and as accurate as possible. Above all, never pretend to know something you don’t. Everything around him is recorded.”
Il-gyu noted that the regime justifies the constant surveillance as “compiling the chronicle of revolutionary history,” with secretaries trailing Kim at every moment. Even emotional displays are policed — flattery and forced smiles are prohibited.
The former diplomat also recounted his own inaugural encounter with Kim, which took place in an airport VIP waiting room. “The first time was at the airport. In the VIP waiting room, my whole body was tight with nerves. The first thing I said, I could hear my own voice shaking as I spoke,” he shared. “But it only lasted a moment. If I’d stayed that tense, I couldn’t have done my job properly. And failing at that job carries serious consequences, so I pulled myself together fast. Anyway, at first, I was extremely nervous.”
Il-gyu pushed back against the deification common in North Korean propaganda, stating that meeting Kim was not quite “like meeting a God.” Yet he acknowledged the encounter carried an unmistakable weight, adding that it “didn’t feel like ordinary contact” between two people.
Il-gyu’s defection followed nearly 24 years of diplomatic service that began in 1999 and culminated in his Cuba posting, a position that placed him among North Korea’s trusted overseas operatives. His decision to abandon the regime came after authorities repeatedly denied his family permission to seek medical care outside the country — a restriction that compounds the hardships faced even by elite regime servants.
The YouTube collaboration represents one of several platforms where Il-gyu has begun reconstructing his experiences for external audiences, offering insight into a leadership circle that remains among the world’s most opaque.