Prime Minister Taro Aso wasn't citing specific intelligence reports when he speculated that North Korea's Kim Jong Il is still running the hermit state, the government's top spokesman said Wednesday.
"It's not that we have detailed information," Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura told reporters. "The prime minister spoke, but it's not as if we have something concrete."
During a Tuesday session of the Upper House, Aso cited reports that Kim "may be hospitalized." Officials don't believe "he's incapable of making decisions," Aso said, responding to a question about Japan's intelligence-gathering.
Kim's absence at North Korea's 60th anniversary parade on Sept. 9 provoked media reports speculating he was suffering from ill health, which North Korean officials deny.
North Korea's state-run Korea Central News Agency reported on Oct. 4 that Kim attended a university soccer match, without publishing pictures or specifying when the game took place. It said Oct. 11 that Kim toured a military base known as KPA Unit 821, without saying when the visit took place or where the camp is located.