After the funeral of Kim Jong Il, North Korea, or to go by its official name The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, has pronounced Kim Jong Un to be ‘supreme leader’.

The son, dubbed North Korea’s Great Successor, seems to enjoy the unequivocal public backing of both the government and military officials, in the wake of his father’s death.

But although he has local backing, there are many worries around the world, about his inexperience and young age – he is only in his late 20s. The questions being asked are whether he is equipped to lead a nation engaged in long-stalled negotiations over its nuclear programme and is still grappling with decades of economic hardship and chronic food shortages and famines.

Life in the North Korean capital Pyongyang came to a standstill as mourners dressed in thick winter clothes blanketed the plaza for the funeral ceremonies for the late leader. A giant red placard hanging on the front of a building facing Kim Il Sung Square, named after Kim Jong Il’s father and founder of North Korea, urged the country to rally around Kim Jong Un.

Attention turned to Kim Jong Un after he was revealed last year as his father’s choice among three known sons to carry the Kim dynasty into a third generation.

The process to groom him was rushed compared to the 20 years Kim Jong Il had to prepare to take over from his father. Kim Il Sung is North Korea’s first and only president; he retains the title ‘Eternal President’ even after his death.

Kim Jong Un was made a four-star general last year and appointed a vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party. Since his father’s death, state media have bestowed on him a series of new titles signalling that his succession campaign was gaining momentum: Great Successor, Supreme Leader and Sagacious Leader.

The aftermath of Kim Jong Il’s death has been watched closely for clues about who in the military and Workers’ Party will form Kim’s inner circle of trusted aides during the sensitive transition to leadership.

But perhaps the biggest question that people will be asking is whether North Korea’s new leader will announce any reforms and move to build bridges with its affluent Southern neighbour. It has been an on and off affair, but ties were stretched to the limit over the past year as a South Korean navy boat was sank by a torpedo claimed to be from the North. In addition, there was a flare up when artillery hit a small fishing island off South Korea. People, including servicemen, died in the attack.

Whether or not the most secretive state in the world opens up to the rest of the world and its neighbour to the south remains to be seen. We will all be waiting.