A last-minute change of venue, an inscrutable handshake and the robotic forced glee of a thousand brightly dressed “wellwishers” with no choice in the matter – it was a textbook welcome from North Korea and the world’s most notorious dictator.

But it was a very unfamiliar Kim Jong Il who shuffled woodenly through a meeting with President Roh of South Korea in Pyongyang yesterday. His gait was uncomfortable, his shoulders hunched and his face a mask bereft of emotion.

The historic summit is the second time leaders of the two Koreas have met, but in contrast to the bear hugs and quips he offered seven years ago to Mr Roh’s predecessor, Mr Kim mustered only “glad to meet you” across a joyless handshake.

Cheering crowds are normally Mr Kim’s element, but his people barely earned a glance from their Dear Leader. If his appearance on the red carpet was a surprise, the absence of his former vigour and famously assured aura was an outright shock, said seasoned North Korea-watchers.

As an opening gambit for an event that is supposedly about deepening the warmth and cooperation across the divided peninsula, Mr Kim’s act was as cold as anyone can remember. Even in Seoul, where the Government longs for at least the appearance of progress on North-South relations, the disappointment was tangible. At the last summit in 2000, a sense of optimism prevailed. The icy welcome Mr Roh received was a poor return for seven years of aid from the South, said analysts.

Some believe that Mr Kim’s disengagement was a sign of faltering health. Throughout the 12-minute welcoming ceremony, his left arm scarcely moved. He could be seen coughing occasionally and though still sporting a considerable paunch, was visibly thinner than on previous sightings. Rumours abound that he underwent heart surgery earlier this year; less in doubt is that he has diabetes and liver problems.

Others were struck by the subtle choreography of the event and the extraordinarily deadpan reception Mr Kim gave his guest. As one South Korean official put it: “You don’t have to be healthy to smile.”

Mr Kim remained stock-still as Mr Roh alighted from an open-top limousine, waiting for his guest to approach him rather than advancing himself. As the two walked past a goose-stepping honour-guard and crowds holding the familiar plastic bunches of pink Kim-jongilia – a flower named after the North Korean leader – Mr Kim remained silent, his eyes staring into the distance. For the hour-long journey to the Paekhwawon State Guest House, the two men took separate cars: in 2000 the Dear Leader welcomed Kim Dae Jung, then South Korea’s President, into the back of his car so that the two could chat.

Brian Myers, an expert on North Korean propaganda, told The Times that Mr Kim’s behaviour at the welcome ceremony yesterday may explain a lot about the crumbling state of his eccentric regime. He said that Mr Kim was realising more and more that he was no longer in complete control of information in the country. North Koreans were now picking up broadcasts from the South on smuggled televisions or sneaking into foreign-owned companies in the capital to use the internet after hours.

Professor Myers said: “If Kim’s information blockade has collapsed and he knows that he can no longer simply package a version of the summit and sell it to his people later, then he also knows that he has to show he’s the boss at events like today. And for him, that means looking stern and dismissive of Roh.”

The meat of this summit, such as it is likely to be, will be discussed today at two scheduled meetings. Economic aid and moves towards a permanent peace – the two Koreas technically remain at war – are tipped as the main proposals from the South.

With only two months left in power, Mr Roh badly wants the summit to be a success. Knowing the risks of failure, his journey from Seoul to the North Korean capital was itself designed as a historic spectacle. Having driven from his official residence with a fleet of 40 cars, lorries and motorbikes, Mr Roh and his wife, Kwon Yang Suk, got out of their limousine to walk across the military demarcation line that divides the two nations.

“I, as President, cross this forbidden line. As I do this, more people will be able to visit and return and the line will be gradually erased and the barrier will be torn down,” said Mr Roh, stepping into the North for the first time.

Across the divide

— South Korea is the smaller of the two, but its population of almost 50 million is more than twice that of the North

— North Korea’s economy is one of the most isolated. GDP per head is $1,800 (£880), while in the South its is $24,500. Most of the North’s exports go to China and the South, its largest aid donors

— There are fewer than a million phone lines in North Korea. Mobile phones are available only to party rulers

— Kim Jong Il's Government closely controls information, tolerating only four television channels and a state radio network wired directly into most residences and workplaces. Across the border, 43 terrestrial channels are supplemented by 60 cable operators and hundreds of radio stations

— Since 1995, the North has relied on food aid to avoid mass starvation. Chronic underinvestment and fuel shortages compounded by flooding have crippled the agricultural sector

Sources: Refugees International; the Congressional Research Service; CIA World Factbook

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