President Lee Myung-bak's remark on Friday in which he said, "The situation surrounding North Korea is fluid" indicates that some volatile change is in progress inside the North Korean leadership, possibly that the North Korean leadership is an internal row, Hankook Ilbo said in its headline news on Saturday.

As the ground for his observation, Lee pointed out the North's mixed attitudes it displayed recently in which both hard-line and conciliatory postures were present.

This comes as a noticeable contrast to its past posture of showing a unified internal voice whether it was to pursue a brinkmanship or conciliatory stance.

These days, Pyongyang on one hand is showing a strategy of appeasement toward the United States and South Korea, but at the same time it is displaying an ultra hard-line posture with its uranium-based nuclear program.

That same contradiction is also reflected in the heir issue as well. Since the beginning of this year, North Korea seemed to be working very hard to solidify the nation's support for the succession of Kim Jong-il's third son, known as "Jong-un."

But on Thursday, North Korea's No. 2 leader Kim Yong-nam said in an interview with Japan's Kyodo News Agency that "At this time, the heir issue is not being discussed," officially denying the move.

Hankook Ilbo cites this also as a notable contrast to the North's past posture of showing a clear-cut, unitary outward fa?ade, adding the contradiction has prompted some observers to speculate whether there is any internal power struggle underway inside the North Korean leadership circle.

A government security source told the newspaper that "The North Korean leadership's grip on domestic politics has been weakening with the deterioration of economic situation there. We cannot exclude the possibility of power struggle among different factions."

But the newspaper also said that the North's official denial of the leadership transition may be an indication that the power elites are becoming more united under the Kim Jong-il system and if the North continues its charm offensive, including returning to the Six-party negotiation, while placating the dissatisfaction of the hard-line voices, the North Korean situation may turn out for the better, resulting in its integration with the rest of the international community.

Fitting into this view, President Lee also said, "The fluid situation in North Korea may herald a new positive opportunity."

sunny.lee@koreatimes.co.kr