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Published January 5, 2024, 7:46 a.m. ET
SEOUL, South Korea – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's young daughter is considered the likely heir to her father's throne, South Korea's spy service said Thursday. It was the first such assessment of the teenager, who was revealed to the outside world a little over a year ago.
Since her first public appearance in November 2022, when she watched the launch of a long-range missile test with her father, there has been heated outside debate and speculation about her, who is reportedly around ten years old and named Ju Ae.
Since then, the girl has accompanied her father to numerous large public events. State media called her Kim Jong Un's “favorite” or “most respected” child and produced footage and photos showing her growing political stature and closeness to her father.
A senior general knelt and whispered to her as she clapped as she watched a military parade from a VIP observation stand in September. During a visit to Air Force headquarters in November, she was once photographed in front of her father, with both Kims wearing sunglasses and long leather jackets.
At a New Year's Eve celebration on Sunday in a packed stadium in Pyongyang, Kim Jong Un kissed her on the cheek and she did the same to her father.
According to a South Korean spy service, Kim Jong Un's teenage daughter Kim Ju Ae is the heir apparent to her father's throne. AP
Most of these scenes would have been unimaginable in North Korea, where Kim is the subject of a strong and loyal following that treats him like a god.
South Korea's main spy agency, the National Intelligence Service, said Thursday that it views Kim Ju Ae as her father's likely successor, citing a comprehensive analysis of her public activities and government records made available to her.
The NIS public affairs office told The Associated Press that it was still considering all options regarding the succession to power in the North because Kim is still young, has no major health problems and has at least one other child. Kim turns 40 on Monday.
South Korean intelligence bases this prediction on an analysis of Kim Ju Ae's public activities and government logs provided to her. AP
Earlier on Thursday, MP Youn Kun-Young said NIS chief candidate Cho Tae-yong had given him this assessment. In telephone conversations with the AP, Youn, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said Cho's written answers to his questions did not provide further details about Kim Ju Ae.
The NIS has a patchy record in confirming developments in North Korea, one of the world's most secretive countries. North Korea's state media has not yet made any direct comments on the succession plan, including whether Kim Ju Ae has siblings.
Du Hyeogn Cha, an analyst at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul, said that while the NUS currently sees a high probability of Kim Ju Ae being groomed to succeed her father, few can predict whether she will ultimately do so will become the next leader of the North.
Cha added that Kim Ju Ae lacks political achievements, which he said are essential for a formal appointment as the country's future leader.
Kim Ju Ae lacks political success, which is an important factor in naming North Korea's next leader. AP
Cheong Seong-Chang, an analyst at the private Sejong Institute in South Korea, said Kim Jong Un probably believes his daughter has the ability and determination to succeed him as leader. He said Kim Jong Un's obesity appears to be so serious that “even if he collapses tomorrow, it won't be surprising.”
“By accompanying her father to major events, it is as if she is learning royalty and building a human network at a young age,” Cheong said.
NIS and officials from other parts of the South Korean government have previously said it was premature to view Kim Ju Ae as her father's heir, given Kim Jong Un's relatively young age and North Korea's Confucianism-influenced, male-nominated power structure. They had said the girl's repeated appearances were intended more to shore up public support for Kim's family and his plan to one day hand power to one of his children.
Since its founding in 1948, North Korea has been successively ruled by male members of the Kim family. Kim Jong Un inherited power after the death of his father Kim Jong Il at the end of 2011. Kim Jong Il took power after his father and state founder Kim Il Sung died in 1994.
The name Ju Ae corresponded to what former NBA star Dennis Rodman called Kim's baby daughter, whom he said he saw and held during a trip to Pyongyang in 2013. The NIS told lawmakers in a private briefing last year that Kim Ju Ae has an older brother and a younger sibling whose gender the agency had not confirmed.
The NIS said at the time that Kim Ju Ae had never been enrolled in an official educational institution and was being homeschooled in Pyongyang, according to some lawmakers present at the news conference.
Cheong, the Sejong Institute analyst, called the NIS information about the older brother inaccurate, although he agrees that Kim Ju Ae has a younger sibling.
The young Kim Ju Ae's revelation came as a big surprise to foreign experts as neither Kim Jong Un nor Kim Jong Il were mentioned in North Korean state media before they came of age.
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