North Korea's ruler has delegated some of his powers to his younger sister, Kim Yo Jong, according to South Korean spies.

As reported by The Guardian, this latest development effectively makes her Kim Jong Un's de facto second-in-command with responsibility for the nation's relations with South Korea and the United States.

"The bottom line is that Kim Jong Un still holds absolute power but has turned over a bit more of his authority compared to the past," said Ha Tae-keung, a South Korean MP who sits on the national assembly’s intelligence committee.

Ha was speaking to reporters after attending a closed-door briefing by South Korea's national intelligence service.

The BBC noted that the spy agency had been wrong about North Korea in the past.

Stress relief after admitting "shortcomings"

Allowing his sister to steer overall state affairs, is said to be partly motivated by Kim's desire to relieve stress from his reign and spread culpability for any failure of policy, said the agency.

The move is not seen as Yo Jong's appointment as a successor to her brother.

News of the delegation of power broke two days after the North Korean ruler indicated the need to address policy "shortcomings".

Kim had spoken at a meeting of the party's central committee on Aug. 19, according to The Guardian.

In his speech, Kim admitted that there had been various "unexpected and inevitable challenges" in the region.

As a result, the ruling Workers' Party had concluded that "improving the national economy had been seriously delayed" and that living standards had not been lifted.

A rare congress — to be held in January 2021 — was thus called, "to set forth a correct line of struggle and strategic and tactical policies," reported North Korean state media KCNA.

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