Given the apparently weak power base and inexperience of the young leader, many
outsiders have cast doubt on the durability and viability of his regime. One notable
critic was Kim Jong-nam,7 Kim Jong-un’s ex-patriot eldest half-brother, who voiced his
critique of the Kim Jong-un regime when he met journalists outside the country, thus
directly challenging the legitimacy and capability of Kim Jong-un as leader (CNN.com,
17 January 2012).