When Kim Jong-un delivered his New Year message offering to participate in high-level talks with South Korea, the setting, his outfit and posture were all strikingly similar to those he adopted exactly two years earlier. Two things, however, appeared radically different - the North Korean leader’s eyebrows. In what appeared to be a case of severe over-plucking, Kim’s brows appeared to be significantly shorter than on earlier occasions, sitting above his eyes like little dashes. Back in 2013 Kim sported a far more distinctive twin-set during his New Year speech – although even then they looked somewhat clipped. It is only by trawling the photo archives back to around 2011 that one can see the arches of a man who clearly shunned the tweezers. READ MORE: Kim Jong-un says he's open to 'highest-level' talks with South in New Year speech Kim’s 2013 new year speech came just weeks before North Korea issued an angry denial that the leader had undergone plastic surgery , after persistent speculation that he was attempting to make himself appear more like his grandfather Kim Il-sung. “The false report... released by enemies is a hideous criminal act which the party, state, army and people can never tolerate,” the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a commentary at the time – the same agency responsible for releasing the latest pictures of Kim and his diminishing furry friends. While his grandfather may not be the inspiration behind his new short-brow look, a picture of Kim, his father Kim Jong-Il and Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang taken during a meeting in Pyongyang in 2011 may provide a clue as to the inspiration behind the leader’s new look. In the picture Kim senior is sporting a similar pair of short brows sitting atop his heavy, trademark spectacles.
