Seoul: South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has said that Kim Jong-Il’s third son, Kim Jong-Un, is expected to continue the dynastic succession in North Korea.
“It seems quite clear North Korean leadership is now entering officially into the third generation of Kim rule,” the Christian Science Monitor quoted Myung-bak, as saying.
He further stressed that South Korea’s government “will be watching very closely whatever transpires in North Korea”.
“What my government is most interested in is whether North Korean leaders are serious about the nuclear issue, inter-Korean peace and its people’s human rights and happiness,” he added.
The President however promised that he would “respond with an open heart” to any signs of “goodwill” from the North.
The younger Kim was appointed a four-star general and given the post of Vice Chairman of North Korea’s Central Military Commission last month.
Little is known about Jong-Un, and most of what is has been culled from defectors and websites that collect information from sources in the North.
In North Korean news media he has been referred to as the “Young General”, “Youth Captain Kim” and even “CNC”, short for computer numerical control, to demonstrate his bona fides as a leader for the 21st century.
He is said to have attended boarding or military school in Switzerland and spent several years in the military.
North Korean leader Jong-Il is reportedly suffering from several illnesses, and is believed to have had a stroke two years ago. He has also travelled to China for treatment.
ANI
