North Korea is believed to be purposely delaying the process of transferring power to Kim Jong-il's third son and heir apparent Kim Jong-un.

Japan’s Asahi Shimbun daily cited two reasons for assuming that Pyongyang was delaying the succession process: the North’s omission of Kim Jong-un's name from Pyongyang’s New Year editorial and the fact that Jong-un’s birthday has yet to be made a holiday.

The birthday of Kim Jong-il, who came to power in 1994, became a national holiday in 1975.

Quoting sources on North Korea, Asahi said the North appears to be intentionally delaying the power succession process.

The paper said the delay relates to Kim Jong-il's heath, which seems to have returned somewhat in recent days. The elder Kim reportedly suffered a stroke in the summer of 2008.