(LEAD) N. Korean leader unlikely to visit China soon: source

(ATTN: RECASTS lead; ADDS background; CORRECTS spelling of son's name)
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is unlikely to visit
China in the imminent future, a South Korean government source said Saturday in
response to widespread speculation on Kim's trip schedule.

"We believe that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il won't make a visit to China
soon," the source said without elaborating.
Speculation has swirled that Kim might soon travel to China, his first such trip
since 2006.
Some Japanese newspapers reported last week that North Korea had restricted
public access to its northwestern region facing the Chinese border city of
Dandong and dispatched an advance team to China to prepare for Kim's trip.
Premier Wen Jiabao and a few other top Chinese officials visited Pyongyang last
year. Some observers speculate that Kim might want to return those Chinese trips
in advance of Pyongyang's full-fledged negotiations with Washington on its
nuclear program.
Asked whether North Korea held any ceremony to celebrate the birthday of Kim
Jong-un, the youngest son of the leader, which falls on Jan. 8, the source said:
"We have failed to receive any intelligence about it."
Kim Jong-il, who allegedly suffered a stroke in August last year and turns 68 in
February, has reportedly tapped Jong-un as his successor.
Daily NK, a Seoul-based Internet media outlet that focuses on North Korea news,
reported Friday that the North declared the son's birthday a national holiday.
The media outlet based its news on an unidentified North Korean resident.
Multiple sources at South Korea's Unification Ministry said they have yet to
confirm the report.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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