By Kyu-seok Shim and Joyce Lee
SEOUL, Feb 26 (Reuters) – The daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a military parade held in Pyongyang on Wednesday night, state media footage showed on Thursday, amid speculation that she is being groomed as a potential successor.
The appearance of the teenager, known as Ju Ae, came at a parade capping off the ruling Workers’ Party Ninth Congress, the biggest event in the country’s political calendar, which analysts have been closely watching for policy shifts.
A photograph published by state media KCNA showed Ju Ae standing next to her father and alongside senior military leaders as they applauded the parade. The pair were both dressed in black leather trench coats.
Another image showed her watching a fly-past next to Kim and the military leaders.
KCNA did not explicitly describe the girl’s role in the parade proceedings, but her presence is likely to fuel speculation about succession in a system built around the Kim family’s dynastic legitimacy.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) earlier this month told lawmakers there were signs that Ju Ae was providing input on policy matters, reflecting that she “was in the stage of being internally appointed successor.”
Ju Ae has made increasingly prominent appearances over the past three years, after first being shown publicly when she accompanied her father at the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile in late 2022, with state media then describing her as his “beloved” daughter.
She has previously appeared, wearing her hair long and often clad in expensive-looking leather jackets or fur-trimmed coats, in images carried in state media reports at a growing range of events including missile tests, military anniversaries and major national celebrations as the state propaganda apparatus gradually elevated her visibility.
North Korea has never confirmed Ju Ae’s age, though she is believed to have been born in the early 2010s.
South Korean intelligence officials believe she is the daughter of Kim Jong Un and his wife, Ri Sol Ju. Her existence became public for the first time when former American basketball player Dennis Rodman revealed in 2013 that the leader had a “baby” daughter named Ju Ae, whom he said he held during his visit to Pyongyang.
There is still little known about Kim’s other children.
The teenager made her international debut, accompanying Kim Jong Un to China last September, further fuelling speculation about her status.
(Reporting by Kyu-seok Shim, Jack Kim and Joyce LeeEditing by Ed Davies)
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