(MENAFN) According to South Korean media reports on Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un did not attend the mausoleum visit commemorating his grandfather Kim Il-sung's birth anniversary for the third consecutive year.

Instead, Premier Park Thae-song, along with Choe Ryong-hae, the chairman of the North's parliamentary standing committee, and other high-ranking officials, visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun on Tuesday to honor the 113th anniversary of Kim Il-sung's birth, as reported by a news agency.

The Kumsusan Palace, located in Pyongyang, is the final resting place of the embalmed bodies of Kim Il-sung and his son, the late Kim Jong-il, who is also Kim Jong-un’s father.

Since assuming power in 2012, Kim Jong-un had consistently made annual visits to the mausoleum. However, this tradition was interrupted in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although he resumed the visits in 2021 and 2022, he chose not to attend this year.

Media reports noted that officials present at the ceremony on Tuesday placed a flower basket bearing Kim Jong-un's name at the statues of both Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.

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