This absence has sparked much speculation in the South Korean press, with many suggesting that Kim is in poor health: During the summer, North Korean state television showed him walking with a slight limp, which many had taken as a sign of a wider problem at the time. Chosun Ilbo notes that Kim appeared in the North Korean media earlier this week, but it was noted that he was “laboring on” in the heat: Perhaps a reference to fatigue, the South Korean newspaper suggests.

Wilder theories have sprung up further afield. Britain’s the Daily Mirror suggests that Kim could have become ill from eating too much imported cheese. The Swiss-educated North Korean leader has developed an infatuation with Emmanuel cheese, the tabloid reports, and may be suffering ill health due to the weight he has since gained. The Daily Mirror provided no source for this theory.

Other news outlets suggest that security concerns may be a factor. “Another reason why Kim may be reluctant to appear in public is the ongoing power struggle inside the North Korean military, which means that the situation in Pyongyang is still unstable,” Toshimitsu Shigemura, a professor at Tokyo’s Waseda University, told the Daily Telegraph.