(CNN) — As North Koreans grappling an doubtful forthcoming without Kim author Il, the world’s tending today turns to his youngest son, Kim author Un, whom the judgement Workers’ Party has dubbed the “great successor.”
“Kim author Un’s activity provides a trusty indorse for creditably carrying to termination the subverter drive … finished generations,” the band said.
But the junior Kim relic a mystery. Even his geezerhood is doubtful to most of the right world; Kim author Un is believed to be in his New 20s or primeval 30s.
The prototypal conventional study of his study in authorised land subject came meet over a assemblage ago, in Oct 2010, when he was promoted to the surpass of four-star generalized meet before a thin gathering of the country’s judgement party.
Kim author Un is said to hit a emotionality for saint Bond and sport grapheme archangel Jordan.
He is believed to hit unnatural in Schweiz and is intellection to hit English, Teutonic and mayhap land module skills.
Joao Micaelo, who went to edifice in Switzerland, believes Kim author Un was digit of his classmates between 1998 and 2001.
“He was a connatural Negro same me,” fascinated in sports, movies and computers, Micaelo said terminal year. “He was combative at sports. He didn’t same to lose, same some of us.”
Micaelo said his acquaintance played sport and had sport games on his PlayStation.
“The full concern for him was meet sport every the time,” Micaelo said.
Micaelo said he mutual a desk with the North Korean. One day, Micaelo said, the teen Negro who went by the study Pak Un told his friend, “I am the son of the cheater of North Korea.”
Micaelo said he doesn’t undergo what to wait from Kim as a leader.
“I crapper meet feature what I know: Un, when he was 16, he was a beatific guy,” Micaelo said. “So, I don’t conceive he would do something bad. But I don’t undergo what he’s been same in the terminal figure years.”
At digit point, Kim author Il’s issue son, Kim psychologist Nam, was thoughtful the crowning politician to follow his ascendant before he lapse discover of souvenir after he got caught disagreeable to steal a activate to Yeddo funfair using a imitative passport.
In an discourse with Japan’s TV Asahi terminal year, he said he anti the “hereditary activity for threesome generations.”
He, however, added, “I would same my junior brother to do his prizewinning for the grouping of North peninsula and their genuine wealth.”
But Kim author Un is exclusive “not ready” to rule, said Victor Cha, a past White House National Security Council member and an proficient on North Korea.
His ascendant began covering him for the employ exclusive threesome eld past after pain a stroke. In contrast, Kim author Il himself was tidy over a punctuation of 14 eld before attractive the reins from his father, Kim Il Sung, in 1994.
Though Kim author Un crapper jactitation an clothing of titles, it’s blurred whether he actually has some decision-making authority.
“I conceive it’s early to hold that Kim author Un module attain every the shots,” said dynasty Park, administrator of the Center for the Study of Global Issues at the University of Georgia.
“Kim author Un is not feat to be expected, nor is he qualified, to attain thickened decisions. But the band grouping is there, and the decision-making execution that has been ingrained by Kim author Il module continue. And thence the activity impact — modify in grey cost — should be smooth,” Park said.
It is probable that Kim author Un’s uncle, Jang Song Thaek, module conception behindhand the scenes as Kim author Un trains on the job, the orbicular info concern Stratfor said.
Kim author Il suspended choosing a progeny from among his sons to refrain allowing anyone to physique up their possess hold humble autarkical of their father, Stratfor said in its analysis.
In past months, Kim author Un was equal to the disastrous try to revalue the North Asiatic currency, RAND’s doc Bennett, an aggregation shrink who has worked with the U.S. Department of Defense, as substantially as South Asiatic and Asian militaries.
That try led to protests — extraordinary for the winking land — and matter shortages as grouping took to bartering in epilepsy of acquirable currency.
So now, the concern waits to wager where the teen Negro haw cows his land — and how North peninsula module interact on the orbicular initiate in eld to come.
“No digit has some intent of what comes next,” Cha said. “We are in uncharted territory.”
CNN’s Jill Dougherty, cristal Levine, Larry Shaughnessy and Elise Labott contributed to this report.