LIKELY in her early teens and bearing a close resemblance to her mother, the daughter of North Korea leader Kim Jong-un is increasingly viewed as his likely heir.
The girl, believed to be named Kim Ju-ae, was in the spotlight again as she accompanied her father on his high-profile China trip, his own first visit to a major gathering of world leaders and her first known trip abroad.
Video and images carried by North Korean state media showed her right behind her father and ahead of Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui as they got off a train in Beijing, clapping as officials at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing bowed to her father, and standing near him as he was seated with senior officials in a meeting room inside his train.
South Korea’s spy agency said that it assesses that the trip solidified her status as her father’s likely heir.
She is believed to be 12 or 13 years old. Not much else is known about her, but her repeated appearances at high-profile events with her father have prompted speculation that she’s being groomed as North Korea’s next leader.
In a closed-door briefing for lawmakers, the South Korean National Intelligence Service said Jong-un was believed to have brought his daughter to China to help her acquire overseas experience and cement her status as his likely heir, according to lawmaker Park Sun-won, who attended the meeting.
The spy agency cited coverage of her appearances in China in the country’s main state TV station and newspaper, which target the ordinary citizens, according to lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun, who was also present at the meeting.
North Korean state media outlets have never published her name, referring to her as Jong-un’s “respected” or “most beloved” child.
The belief that she is named Ju-ae is based on an account by former NBA champion Dennis Rodman, in which he recalled holding Jong-un’s baby daughter during a trip to Pyongyang in 2013.
Her exact age is unconfirmed but South Korean intelligence officials believe she was born in 2013.
In 2023, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers it assessed that Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju also have an older son and a younger third child whose gender is unknown.
Jong-un allowed his daughter to be seen in public for the first time during a test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile in November 2022. Photos in state media showed Ju-ae wearing a white coat and red shoes as she watched a soaring missile from a distance and walked hand-in-hand with her father.
Her carefully-crafted appearances have included missile tests, military parades, and the launch of a naval destroyer in April.
Jong-un has recently expanded his daughter’s public appearances beyond military events to include some of his most ambitious economic projects and cultural events, including the opening of a beach resort in June.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service issued a careful assessment last year that it views Ju-ae as her father’s likely successor, citing a comprehensive analysis of her public activities and the state protocols provided to her.
However, some outside experts disagree with that assessment, citing Jong-un’s relatively young age and the extremely male-dominated nature of North Korea’s power hierarchy.
In a briefing at parliament, the National Intelligence Service assessed that Jong-un has no major health issues and that he conducted official schedules in China smoothly.
Since its foundation in 1948, North Korea has been successively ruled by male members of the Kim family – Jong-un’s father Kim Jong-il and grandfather Kim Il-sung.
Jong-un inherited power in late 2011 upon his father’s death. — AP
