North Korean leader Kim Jong-il was opposed to the second hereditary power succession, but had no other option in order to stabilize the impoverished communist state, a Japanese newspaper quoted Kim’s eldest son as saying Friday.

The Tokyo Shimbun said it had an exclusive interview with Kim Jong-nam, thought to be in his late 30s, in a southern Chinese city earlier this month.

“Even Chairman Mao Zedong of China did not carry out hereditary succession. (It) doesn’t fit with socialism and my father was also against it,” Kim said in the interview.

“I understand that the succession is aimed at stabilizing the national system. Instability in the North will lead to instability in nearby (regions).”

Last October, Jong-nam told Japan’s TV Asahi in Beijing that he was “against the third generation succession.”

The reclusive regime has been revving up efforts for the third-generation power transfer as the health of its 69-year-old leader, believed to have suffered a stroke in the summer of 2008, is waning.

Appointing Kim’s youngest son Jong-un to top military and political posts last year, the North made it essentially official that Kim wants the Swiss-educated son, believed to be in his late 20s, to succeed him.

Jong-nam apparently fell out of his father’s favor after his arrest for attempting to enter Japan on a forged passport in May 2001. Since then, he has reportedly bided his time in China and other neighboring countries.

Touching on North Korea’s artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island in November, which killed two marines and two civilians, he indicated that it was an attempt to justify the North’s possession of nuclear arms and its first-military policy.

Pointing out the poor economic conditions in the North, Jong-nam said that North Korea should open up and focus on economic reform.

“(North Korea’s) currency reform (in November 2009) was a failure. Under the current circumstances, North Korea cannot become an economic power. What the North wants is to normalize relations with the U.S. and entrench peace on the Korean Peninsula,” he said.

He also said the likelihood of the North abandoning its nuclear ambitions is “low.”

“North Korea’s national power stems from nuclear weapons. As long as the confrontational situation with the U.S. continues, the possibility is low,” he said.

Denying the rumor that he is facing the threat of being assassinated after he lost favor with his father, he said it is “groundless.”

“I, at times, deliver my opinions to (my father) in person. I also have good relationships with Kim Kyong-hui and Jang Song-thaek. The rumor is groundless and I have never felt any threat,” he said.

Kim Kyong-hui is Kim Jong-il’s younger sister while Jang is her husband. Both are known to be the leader’s top aides who play a crucial role in solidifying the power succession scheme.

Jong-nam also expressed sympathy toward poor North Koreans.

“My heart aches when I get the news (about North Korean people.) I cannot think that their life has gotten any better,” he said.

“I hope the North will stabilize and achieve economic recovery. This is my pure wish for my younger brother (Jong-un). It is not that I would challenge or criticize him.”

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)