Dennis Rodman describes '7-star party' lifestyle of Kim Jong-un

Dennis Rodman, the former US basketball star, has described the life of Kim Jong-un as a "seven-star" party with constant cocktails, jet-skis at the North Korean dictator's private island and luxury yachts.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (L) meets with former NBA star Dennis Rodman Photo: EPA

Rodman, 52, paid a second visit to North Korea in September and described Kim as "a good friend."

In an interview with The Sun, the flamboyant former Chicago Bulls star said he spent seven days on Kim's private island.

"It's like going to Hawaii or Ibiza, but he's the only one that lives there," Rodman said. "He likes people to be happy around him.

^{Former basketball star Dennis Rodman waits to check in as he transits to Pyongyang at Beijing Capital International Airport (Reuters)}

"He's got 50 to 60 around him all the time - just normal people, drinking cocktails and laughing the whole time.

"If you drink a bottle of tequila, it's the best tequila," he added. "Everything you want, he has the best."

Kim's 200-foot yacht is a "cross between a ferry and a Disney boat," Rodman said.

^{Party animal: Kim Jong-un 'likes people to be happy around him'}

Rodman was returning to North Korea seven months after he initially went to Pyongyang to make a documentary about basketball - of which Kim is a huge fan - and there have been suggestions that a basketball match might help to spur diplomatic discussions on reintegrating North Korea back into global society.

Human rights organisations, however, are demanding that more pressure be brought to bear on the regime, which spent $645.8 million on luxury goods in 2012.

^{Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju}

The imports included exotic pets, perfume, maternity products and bathroom fittings, according to a report presented to the South Korean parliament in early October.

Imports of bottles of high-end alcohol alone cost $30 million, with electronic goods costing the state $37 million and luxury watches a further $8.2 million.

In early October, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation said North Korea remains one of the 34 nations in the world that require external aid to feed its people. The agency estimates that around 2.8 million "vulnerable" people in the North required foreign assistance ahead of the autumn