Son of Dictator: 'North Korea Will Collapse Soon'

The Korea Times reports:

“Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, apparently believes the Stalinist regime could collapse amid a power transfer to his younger brother, a South Korean official said Tuesday.

Lee Gi-taek, the head of Seoul’s National Unification Advisory Council, spoke with a close friend of the 38-year-old Kim during a recent trip to Macau, where Kim lives.

During a lecture in Berlin on North Korea policy, Lee said the friend had asked Kim whether he would visit the North to see his father whose health is reportedly flagging after suffering a stroke in 2008.

‘Why should I go there? I’m not interested in the succession,’ Lee quoted him as saying. ‘North Korea will collapse soon. How long can this regime last?’

The report follows a rare interview with Kim Jong-nam by Asahi TV earlier this month, when he said he was against the succession from his father to his younger brother, Jong-un, who is thought to be 27.”