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“Not only is (Kim Jong-un) young and inexperienced, but his aunt, Kim Kyung-hee, Kim Jong-il's sister and the wife of the second-ranking figure in North Korea's hierarchy, Jang Song-taek, may balk at power slipping through her fingers,” said Yuriko Koike, Japan's former minister of defense and national security adviser, in a piece she contributed to South China Morning Post.
Koike backs her claim, by pointing out that Kim Kyung-hee has served in a range of key Workers' Party positions and has been a member of the all-powerful Central Committee.
Her power partly comes from Kim Jong-il’s trust on her as well. Kim Jong-il has described his sister as "my only blood family whom I was asked to take care of by my mother till the moment she died," the Japanese observer said.
“Indeed, in a country where trust rarely exists, Kim Kyung-hee is the only blood relation whom Kim Jong-il has ever fully trusted,” she said.
Kim Kyung-hee's intent to exercise power after her brother's death is supported by rumors she helped arrange a traffic accident in June that killed Ri Je-gang, a senior party official and perceived guardian of Kim Jong-un who reportedly attempted to oust Kim Kyung-hee and her allies from power, Koike said.
“There is a growing belief that Kim Jong-il might at any moment designate Kim Kyung-hee to serve as a caretaker for the third-generation successor after his death. But Kim Kyung-hee may have other plans, such as becoming Kim Jong-il's successor herself,” she argued.
