The U.S. government says it has been aware of North Korea's plans for a power transition since last year.

Dennis Wilder, a former senior director for East Asian Affairs on the National Security Council, told the Voice of America on Friday that the U.S. government has been aware of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s initiation of a political transition since late last year. He said Kim reportedly picked his third son Jong-un as his successor.

Wilder said North Korean discussions of succession began last December when the leader Kim returned to work after recovering from a stroke.

Wilder suggested that Kim Jong-un would be unable to take complete control over the regime if his father dies within the next two to three years and that if that is the case, Kim Jong-il's brother-in-law, Jang Seong-thaek, would likely rise to power.

Wilder is an expert on North Korea who dealt with issues regarding the communist country for five years under the Bush administration.