Newly minted North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sought to mark his coming to power with the launch of a state of the art missile, as part of the country’s week of celebrations honouring the 100^th anniversary of the birth of his grandfather, Kim Il-sung. Instead, the rocket fell apart soon after takeoff on Friday, harmlessly splintering into the Yellow Sea, and creating the first major public embarrassment for the young despot.

Jong-un, who was reportedly educated in Western Europe and is rumored to be a rabid basketball fan, was selected as the successor to the position of North Korea’s supreme leader following the death of his father Kim Jong-il in December of 2011.  As a result of his age (he is said to be in his late 20s) and inexperience, however, there has been talk that his grip on power in the pariah nation may be tenuous, at best.

Hence the rocket launch, meant to serve as a display of North Korean military might and a message to potential adversaries. Obviously, it did not go quite as planned. As Marcus Noland of the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics wrote: “The North Koreans have managed in a single stroke to not only defy the U.N. Security Council, the United States and even their patron China, but also demonstrate ineptitude.” An impressive accomplishment, especially at that age!

Further confusing matters was the fact that the North Korean government was actually honest with its citizens about the test’s failure. In the past, North Korea has explained away failed satellite launches by claiming that the satellites were in fact circling the earth, broadcasting songs about the country’s great leaders for all the world to hear (isn’t propaganda great?). In this age of cell phones and social media, however, the government must have concluded that trying to hide the truth in this case would have been an exercise in futility.

Aside from the embarrassment, this was also an expensive failure. The New York Times estimates the total cost of the episode at over $1 billion, in a country with high levels of poverty and starvation. At his first public speech on Sunday, however, Kim Jong-un promised more of the same, remarking that his “first, second and third priorities” were to strengthen the military, which I’m sure was of great comfort to all those struggling to put food on their tables.

On the surface, this international embarrassment does not appear to have undermined Jong-un’s place atop the North Korean food chain. Hours after the rocket’s failure, in fact, he was appointed the new head of the National Defense Commission, North Korea’s highest state agency, following what I’m sure was a grueling series of interviews.

His speech on Sunday was further meant to signal his consolidation of power, as he took a hardline stance on North Korea’s military and boasted that the country had become “a proud political and military power and an independent people that no one can dare provoke.” Following the 20-minute speech was a military parade that South Korean officials said was the North’s largest display of weapons.

Questions still linger below the surface, however, about the future of the North Korean regime. There has been speculation that the failed rocket test was possibly a sign of a power struggle within the country, especially given that North Korea’s most important international ally, China, warned against the launch.

If there is such instability in the North Korean government, it may not be a good thing; one senior American intelligence officer recently remarked that, “I’d rather have an unstable Kim Jong-un in charge than a free-for-all where you are wondering who’s really in control of the arsenal.”

For the world’s youngest dictator, then, the immediate challenge will be to consolidate power and limit any potential opposition to his rule. For the rest of the global community, the most pressing task will be to figure out who’s who in the North Korean regime, and whether the transfer of power offers any opportunities to moderate the militaristic aggression of one of the greatest ongoing threats to international security.

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Matthew Frisch writes Foreign Desk for Toronto Standard. Follow him @mfrisch.

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