Kim Jong-un’s daughter close to being named North Korea’s next leader, Seoul says

South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers on Thursday that it believes the teenage daughter of of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is close to being designated as the country’s next leader as he moves to extend the family dynasty to a fourth generation.

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The assessment by the National Intelligence Service (NIS) comes as North Korea is preparing to hold its biggest political conference later this month, where Kim is expected to outline his major policy goals for the next five years.

In a closed-door briefing, NIS officials said they are closely monitoring whether Kim’s daughter, believed to be named Kim Ju-ae and around 13 years old, appears with him before thousands of delegates at the upcoming Workers’ Party Congress, said lawmaker Lee Seong Kweun, who attended the meeting.

First appearing in public at a long-range missile test in November 2022, Kim Ju-ae has since accompanied her father at an increasing number of events, including weapons tests, military parades and factory openings.

She travelled with him to Beijing last September for Kim’s first summit with China’s leader Xi Jinping in six years, on the sidelines of a commemoration marking the end of World War II.

Speculation about her political future intensified last month when she joined her parents on a New Year’s Day visit to Pyongyang’s Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, a sacred family mausoleum displaying the embalmed bodies of her late grandfather and great-grandfather, the country’s first- and second-generation leaders.

Some experts saw the visit as the clearest sign yet that she’s positioned to be the heir to her 42-year-old father.

South Korean officials initially expressed doubt that she could be chosen as a North Korean leader, citing the country’s deeply conservative culture and tradition of male-dominated leadership.

But her increasingly prominent appearances in state media have prompted a reassessment.

In its previous report about Kim Ju-ae’s status in September, the NIS told lawmakers that Kim Jong-un’s decision to bring her along on his trip to China was likely part of an effort to build a “narrative” possibly paving the way for her succession.

“In the past, (NIS) described Kim Ju-ae as being in the midst of ‘successor training.’ What was notable today is that they used the term ‘successor-designate stage,’ a shift that’s quite significant,” Lee said.

According to Lee, the agency cited her growing presence at high-profile military events, her inclusion in the family visit to Kumsusan and signs that Kim Jong-un was beginning to seek her input on certain policy matters.

Little public information about Kim’s daughter

Despite her increased visibility in propaganda, North Korean state media have never published the name of Kim Jong-un’s daughter, only referring to her as his “respected” or “most beloved” child.

The belief that she is named Kim Ju-ae is based on an account by former NBA star Dennis Rodman, in which he recalled holding Kim Jong-un’s baby daughter during a trip to Pyongyang in 2013. South Korean intelligence officials believe she was born sometime that year.

In 2023, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers that Kim Jong-un and his wife also likely have an older son and a younger third child whose gender is unknown.

Since its foundation in 1948, North Korea has been ruled by male members of the Kim family, beginning with the country’s founder Kim Il-sung and followed by his son, Kim Jong-il.

Kim Jong-un was just 26 when he was officially named heir during a 2010 party conference, two years after Kim Jong-il suffered a debilitating stroke.

Following his father’s death in December 2011, he was abruptly thrust into the throne with relatively little preparation.

Some analysts suggest that Kim Jong-un’s decision to debut his daughter early possibly reflects his own experience of being rushed into power.