View From Seoul: 'We Don't See Anybody Running to Get Ready for War'

WORLD -- December 22, 2011 at 12:26 PM EDT

View From Seoul: 'We Don't See Anybody Running to Get Ready for War'

Following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il on Saturday, the mood in South Korea has remained calm.

"We don't see anybody running to get ready for war," or stocking up their pantry, Stella Kim, a journalist based in Seoul, told Hari Sreenivasan on Thursday morning local time.

Kim's son and successor "Kim Jong-un appears to be in charge" and the government is offering a sense of stability, which is welcome in the region and the rest of the world, she said.

Listen to their full interview:

Watch a video from the state-run Korean Central News Agency of reaction within North Korea to Kim Jong-Il's death:

Kim Jong-Il's funeral is set for Wednesday. According to the Wall Street Journal, some South Koreans are expected to attend:

Officially, North Korea has said it won't accept any foreign delegations at the funeral, but there are likely to be two from South Korea. The government in Seoul has said it will allow Lee Hee-ho, the wife of the late South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, to attend the funeral after the North sent representation to the funeral of her husband in 2009.

Also going with Seoul's approval is Hyun Jeong-eun, the chairwoman of Hyundai Group, which has extensive business interests in the North. A twist to her visit is that North Korea earlier this year seized Hyundai assets at the Kumgang mountain resort so she may be looking to discuss business while she's there.

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