A pupil has his temperature taken as part of anti Covid-19 procedures before entering the Pyongyang Secondary School No. 1 in Pyongyang on June 22, 2021. (Photo by Kim Won Jin/AFP Photo)





In this June 30, 2021, file photo, staff of the Pyongyang Primary School No. 4 clean stairwells in Pyongyang, North Korea. There is no sign that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been inoculated against the coronavirus and his country hasn't received any foreign vaccines, South Korea's spy agency said Thursday, July 8, 2021. (Photo by Cha Song Ho/AP Photo)





Pyongyang citizens visit Mansu Hill to pay homage to the bronze statues of President Kim Il Sung and Chairman Kim Jong Il ahead of the 27th anniversary of the death of President Kim Il Sung, in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Wednesday, July 7, 2021. (Photo by Cha Song Ho/AP Photo)





People bow before a portrait of the late leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il on the 27th anniversary of the former’s death in Pyongyang, North Korea on July 9, 2021. (Photo by Kim Won Jin/AFP Photo)





Pyongyang citizens holding North Korean flags watch a performance by an art troupe in front of the Pyongyang Grand Theatre in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, to mark the Korean War armistice anniversary. The leaders of North and South Korea restored suspended communication channels between them and agreed to improve ties, both governments said Tuesday, amid a 2 ½ year-stalemate in U.S.-led diplomacy aimed at stripping North Korea of its nuclear weapons. (Photo by Cha Song Ho/AP Photo)





Pyongyang citizens visit the Fatherland Liberation War Martyrs Cemetery in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 27, 2021 to mark the Korean War armistice anniversary. (Photo by Jon Chol Jin/AP Photo)





An art troupe performs in front of the Pyongyang Grand Theatre in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, to mark the Korean War armistice anniversary. (Photo by Cha Song Ho/AP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, is welcomed by participants of a veteran conference in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, July 29, 2021. North Korea said Friday, July 30, 2021 that Kim called for stronger capability to cope with any foreign provocation as he met with military officers ahead of annual drills next month between South Korea and the United States that Pyongyang views as an invasion rehearsal. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: “KCNA” which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





Children perform a fairy tale entitled “The Hedgehog Defeats the Tiger” at the Pyongyang Baby Home in Pyongyang on September 2, 2021. (Photo by Kim Won Jin/AFP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un walks with children during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: “KCNA” which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean soldiers parade during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary that was overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean solders on vehicles parade during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary that was overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center right, and his wife Ri Sol Ju, center, left, visit the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, marking the nation’s 73rd anniversary in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, a huge North Korean flag is displayed during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, waves to participants as they gather for a group photo, in a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean troops parade during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary that was overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean soldiers on horses parade during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary that was overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, waves from a balcony toward the assembled troops and spectators during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Photo)





This picture taken on September 9, 2021 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows a parade of “paramilitary and public security forces” to celebrate the 73rd founding anniversary of North Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)





In this photo provided by the North Korean government, military hardware is seen during a celebration of the nation’s 73rd anniversary that was overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, early Thursday, September 9, 2021. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo/Stringer)