With an international probe concluding North Korea torpedoed the Cheonan on March 26, Global News takes a closer look into the political life and conflicts of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.
Created by hloney on May 27, 2010
Last updated: 05/27/10 at 04:16 PM
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South Korea breaks off all trade with the North after investigators say they have found proof the South Korean naval ship Cheonan was sunk by a North Korean torpedo. Pyongyang describes the findings as a "fabrication" and cuts all diplomatic ties with Seoul.
South Korean warship Cheonan sinks under mysterious circumstances near the maritime border with North Korea.
North Korea declares four areas near its disputed sea border with South Korea to be naval firing zones, according to the South Korean military, and deploys multiple rocket launchers close to the frontier.
North Korea sentences two US journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee to 12 years hard labour for allegedly crossing the border illegally. In August 2009, Former US President Bill Clinton visits to help secure the release of the two US journalists.
North Korea launches a rocket carrying what it says is a communications satellite; its neighbours accuse it of testing long-range missile technology. After criticism of the launch from the UN Security Council, North Korea walks out of the international six-party talks aimed at winding up its nuclear programme. Kim Jong-il attends parliamentary vote to re-elect him leader, in his first major state appearance since a suspected stroke in 2008.
North Korea says it is scrapping all military and political deals with the South, accusing Seoul of "hostile intent".
North Korea accuses the US of not fulfilling its part of a disarmament-for-aid deal and says it is preparing to restart the Yongbyon reactor. The US removes North Korea from its list of countries which sponsor terrorism, in return for Pyongyang agreeing to provide full access to its nuclear sites.
Kim Jong-il fails to appear at an important military parade, triggering speculation over his state of health.
US says North Korea has failed to meet end-of-2007 deadline on declaring nuclear activities.
Kim Jong Il commits to disable three nuclear facilities and declare all its nuclear programmes by year-end. The presidents of North and South Korea pledge at a Pyongyang summit to seek talks to formally end the Korean war. Later in the year, North and South Korea's prime ministers meet for the first time in 15 years.
North Korea test-fires a long-range missile, to an international outcry.
Kim Jong Il says North Korea has enough plutonium to start making nuclear bombs.
North Korea withdraws from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, sparking protests in South Korea.
South Koreans protest North Korea's nuclear programme. A group of Korean war veterans took to the streets, burning a North Korean flag and posters of Kim Jong-Il, in protest of the North decision to resume its nuclear programme and its admittance last October that it was again seeking to produce nuclear weapons.
Nuclear tensions mount as the US says North Korea has admitted to having a secret weapons programme. The US halts oil shipments to Pyongyang. Kim Jong Il reactivates the Yongbyon reactor and throws out international inspectors.
North and South Korean naval vessels wage a gun battle in the Yellow Sea, the worst skirmish for three years.
US President George W Bush says North Korea is part of an "axis of evil", along with states such as Iraq and Iran. North Korea rebutted saying that Bush has not stopped far short of declaring war.
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visits Kim Jong Il in October 2000. The Albright visit is part of a coordinated strategy involving Washington and its allies, South Korea and Japan, to end the North's isolation and remove the threat of war in one of the world's most volatile regions.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il and South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung joining hands before signing a written agreement during a historic summit between the two countries in the North Korean capital city of Pyongyang.
North Korea officials walk across the border to discuss preparations with the South Korean delegation for a historic inter-Korean summit between South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il on June 12-14 in Pyongyang. The South Korean delegation, including another two director generals from the ministry, was set to meet with its three North Korean counterparts at the border.
North Korea launches a rocket that flies over Japan and lands in the Pacific Ocean. North Korean officials insists it fired a satellite, not a missile.
US agrees to help provide two modern nuclear reactors to North Korea, which are designed to produce less weapons-grade plutonium.
President Kim Il Sung passes away. After his death Kim Jong Il guides the country as the supreme leader of the DPRK.
Kim Jong Il becomes an elected member of the Political Committee of the Party Central Committee and successor to Kim Il Sung
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