The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, has named his daughter as his successor, according to South Korea’s intelligence agency, which informed lawmakers on Thursday.
Kim Ju Ae, thought to be 13, has recently been seen alongside her father at notable events, including a trip to Beijing in September, marking her first known overseas journey.
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) stated it considered a “variety of factors,” including her growing visibility at official events, in reaching this conclusion.
The NIS indicated it would closely monitor whether she will participate in the North’s party congress occurring later this month—the—the biggest political event held every five years.
The party congress is anticipated to provide additional information regarding priorities such as foreign policy, military strategies, and nuclear goals for the upcoming five years.
On Thursday, legislator Lee Seong-kwen informed journalists that Ju Ae, who the NIS had earlier referred to as being “trained” for succession, was now at the point of “successor designation.”
“As Kim Ju Ae has shown her presence at various events, including the founding anniversary of the Korean People’s Army and her visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, and signs have been detected of her voicing her opinion on certain state policies, the NIS believes she has now entered the stage of being designated as successor,” Lee said.
Ju Ae is the only child of Kim Jong Un and his spouse, Ri Sol Ju. The NIS believes that Kim Jong Un has an elder son, but this son has never been recognized or displayed in North Korean media.
Reports of Ju Ae’s existence initially came from an unexpected source: American basketball star Dennis Rodman, who disclosed to The Guardian in 2013 that he “held baby Ju Ae” during a visit to the secretive country.
Ju Ae was first seen on state television in 2022. She was seen examining North Korea’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile while grasping her father’s hand.
Since then, she has regularly appeared on state media, softening her father’s portrayal as a cruel dictator. She joined him in Beijing for China’s largest military parade in history, where she was spotted disembarking from his armored train at Beijing Railway Station.
She is frequently observed with her hair long, a style prohibited for her classmates, and dressed in designer clothing, which many in her nation can not afford.
Another legislator, Park Sun-won, noted that Ju Ae’s involvement in public events suggests she has begun to offer policy suggestions and is regarded as the actual second-highest leader.
The authority in North Korea has been inherited through three generations of the Kim family, and many expect Kim Jong Un to transfer the leadership to Ju Ae.
In the past few months, she was seen standing taller than her dad, walking next to him instead of behind him.
In North Korea, where images released by state media are thought to hold significant symbolic value, it is uncommon for anyone besides Kim Jong Un to appear with the same level of prominence in the shot.
While the South Korean intelligence agency currently sees Ju Ae as the chosen successor, it still prompts inquiries.
It is confusing why Ju Ae, a daughter, would be chosen as the successor over an elder son in North Korea’s strongly patriarchal culture.
Numerous defectors and analysts had earlier regarded the notion of a female leader in North Korea as improbable, citing the nation’s deep-rooted traditional gender roles. However, Kim Jong Un’s sister—Kim Yo Jong—provides a model for female power within the regime.
Kim Yo Jong presently occupies a high-ranking role in the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea and is said to have sway over her brother.
Yet, it remains puzzling why Kim Jong Un, who is youthful and seems fairly fit, is appointing a 13-year-old as his successor at this time.
The impact of Ju Ae’s succession on North Korea remains uncertain.
Numerous North Koreans were optimistic that Kim Jong Un, a young man educated in the West, would facilitate their country’s integration with the outside world upon succeeding his father.
However, that hope remained unrealized. Any intentions this teenager holds for her nation, she would probably possess the unique ability to mold it as she wishes.
