Kremlinology Update

Kim Jong-Il’s third son, the likely successor to the North Korean leader, has been appointed acting defence chief under his ailing father, a Japanese newspaper reported on Saturday. Kim Jong-Un started supporting his father as acting chairman of North Korea’s National Defence Commission, the evening edition of the Mainichi Shimbun said, quoting unnamed sources close to North Korean leadership. [AFP]

I don’t believe one word of it. Even if Kim Jong Il were incapacitated — a possibility I certainly wouldn’t rule out — there’s no way a porcine, corrupted, spoiled 26 year-old is going to manage a nest of vipers as wily as North Korea’s septuagenarian generals.

Meanwhile, the AP’s Kwang-Tae Kim reports on the ROK Defense Minister’s speculation that Kim Jong Un may not be the successor at all.  Consider your own guess as good as mine, though the article is interesting reading nonetheless.