 North Korean leader |
Staff Reporter
A senior U.S. official has said North Korea's aging leader Kim Jong-il appears to have only three more years to live, according to Yonhap News Agency, Wednesday.
U.S. Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell made the remark in a closed-door meeting during his trip to Seoul last month, officials were quoted as saying by Yonhap.
On Feb. 3, Campbell invited a group of North Korean defectors and politicians, including Rep. Park Sun-young of the Liberty Forward Party and former Democratic Party Chairwoman Chang Sang to the U.S. Embassy, to discuss the political situation and power succession in the communist North.
Also present were U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens and online newspaper Daily NK publisher Han Ki-hong.
Asked how much longer the 68-year old North Korean leader would live, one forecast five years, while another guest predicted less than that, a participant said on condition of anonymity.
He said Campbell noted that the latter's prediction would be more accurate, claiming Kim may only live three more years based on a comprehensive collection of medical analyses.
The deteriorating health of the reclusive leader has often been the center of international media attention since Kim allegedly had a stroke in 2008.
Early this month, medical doctors here analyzed photographs of Kim and concluded that he is suffering from kidney problems.
They said pictures of Kim taken since April last year display common symptoms of renal disease -- abnormally white fingernails and dark hands.
During the meeting, Campbell also reportedly said the transfer of power in the North would be "totally different," compared to when Kim Jong-il took over from his father.
The U.S. diplomat underlined that Kim spent a decade under his father Kim Il-sung, who founded the Stalinist regime, to learn the ropes, whereas Jong-un, who is known to be only 26, has undergone no such training.
Campbell also expressed concern on uncertainties lying over the looming power change, saying a rapid handover of power to Jong-un may spark political chaos in the North.
leeth@koreatimes.co.kr
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