The New York Times says North Korean leader Kim Jong-il appears to be expediting the power transition process to his third son, Jong-un.

In its Sunday edition, the paper’s article entitled "North Korea Appears to Tap Leader’s Son as Enigmatic Heir," says Kim Jong-il has been rushing to prepare the ground for his son to take over as the next leader of the country.

Included in the article was a photo released by the North last month of Kim Jong-il and a man some analysts say could be his son, Jong-un. The two are touring a steel plant in North Hamgyeong Province.

The article quoted Cheong Seong-chang, a specialist on North Korean politics at the Sejong Institute in Seoul, as saying that there's a high possibility that the man in the photo is Kim Jong-un.

The paper said that if Cheong is right, "the photographs are the latest signs of the desperate push the North Korean government is making to build a cult of personality around the son to prepare him to assume control as the current leader’s health declines."