A number of media outlets are reporting that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's visit to China was related to the issue of power succession in the North.

The Washington Post said there was no mention of Kim's third son and heir apparent Jong-un in either nation's dispatches about the five-day trip that ended Monday. But it said that "signs that the North Korean regime is laying the groundwork for a succession movement abounded" in the 68-year-old Kim's trip by train through northeastern China.

Fox News also said that "Kim's Thursday trip to China was his second in three months which is unusual for a man who never flies and travels only by armored train." Fox said this has led to "speculation by South Korean media and regional analysts that Kim may be seeking Chinese aid and could be laying the diplomatic ground work for the succession of his son, who is thought to be traveling with him."

The New York Times also quoted the North's official Korean Central News Agency as saying that Kim Jong-il mentioned the succession issue during talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao.