North Korea's unpredictable young dictator Kim Jong Un has apparently been unable to check his own smoking habit -- even during public photo opportunities -- in spite of his regime's declared campaign to discourage tobacco use.

Photos of Kim at his desk with a cigarette in his hand and an ashtray in front of him, surrounded by smiling underlings, were commonplace early on. Similar images of his late father Kim Jong Il, who was also a heavy smoker, were also pervasive during his reign.

A photo released by the official KCNA news agency on June 4, featuring a smiling Kim visiting a children's camp in Pyongyang, shows him holding a cigarette between his fingers.

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Before that he was seen lighting up in March, as he observed a missile test.

According to the BBC, North Korea's state-controlled Rodong Sinmun newspaper has, meanwhile, touted the government's "brisk" anti-smoking campaign, which has included a documentary on national television.

There is a high rate of smoking among North Korean men, even by Asian standards. In 2012 the World Health Organization estimated that more than half of North Korean men were smokers, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap.

With men in the country strongly encouraged to idolize and mimic the behaviour of their totalitarian leader -- right down to his trademark haircut -- the official anti-smoking campaign may find it hard to sway minds.