A Chinese official says North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is healthy.

The head of the international department of China’s Communist Party, Wang Jiarui, told a Japanese newspaper Friday that Kim had no difficulty speaking and was able to lift things with his left hand.

The Mainichi Shimbun said China would not have released the specifics of Wang’s trip if there were problems with Kim’s health.

Wang visited Pyongyang late December and held nearly two hours of talks with Kim.

South Korean and U.S. intelligence officials said the North Korean leader suffered a stroke in mid-August.