Speed Reads

North Korea

Kim Jong Un bans foreign cigarettes

Kim Jong Un has reportedly ordered North Korea's senior officials not to smoke foreign cigarettes, according to the Yonhap news agency.

The Korea Herald reports that for Kim, the ban is a matter of patriotism. Kim, who is himself a smoker, reportedly said that smoking foreign cigarettes "means a lack of patriotism," China-based sources involved with trade in North Korea told Yonhap.

Kim apparently said that North Korea's domestic cigarettes are of "good quality," so there is "no need for foreign cigarettes." But in the smuggling-prone country, his ban may not mean much.