SEOUL: North Korea announced a reshuffle of senior officials Thursday just days ahead of a key communist party meeting expected to pave the way for a power transfer from Kim Jong-Il to his son.

Kang Sok-Ju, North Korea`s first vice minister of foreign affairs, has been appointed to the position of a vice premier of the cabinet, the Korea Central News Agency said.

Kim Kye-Gwan, Pyongyang`s chief negotiator in six-nation nuclear disarmament talks, was named to fill Kang`s slot at the foreign ministry while Ri Yong-Ho, Kim`s deputy in the nuclear talks, was named a vice foreign minister.

The announcement came as North Korea prepares for its biggest political meeting for decades next week, expected to pave the way for a power transfer to Kim Jong-Il`s youngest son, Jong-Un.

The conference of the ruling communist party "for electing its supreme leadership body will take place in Pyongyang on September 28", KCNA said on Tuesday, describing it as an "historic" meeting.

The event had been scheduled for early September but it was postponed without any explanation from the secretive state.

It will be the first major gathering of the Workers` Party of Korea since a congress in 1980 confirmed Kim as successor to his own father and founding president Kim Il-Sung, who died in 1994.

The conference is expected to put a new leadership line-up in place, spell out possible policy shifts and give top party posts to Jong-Un`s supporters, such as the senior Kim`s powerful brother-in-law Jang Song-Thaek.

Kim Jong-Il, 68, suffered a stroke in August 2008 and has visibly aged since then. Some reports say he also has kidney problems that require dialysis.

Kang, known to be overseeing Pyongyang`s nuclear negotiations and diplomatic policies on the United States, accompanied Kim Jong-Il during his visit to China last month.

BDST: 10:00 HRS, September 23, 2010