SEOUL, (Reuters): Kim Ju-ae, the daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has made her first public visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, a highly symbolic move that has renewed speculation she is being groomed as her father’s successor.
According to images released by state news agency KCNA, Kim Jong-un visited the mausoleum on January 1 alongside his wife, Ri Sol-ju, senior officials, and Kim Ju-ae, who was seen standing between her parents in the main hall. The site houses the embalmed bodies of North Korea’s founding leader Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il, and is traditionally visited by the current leader on major anniversaries and political milestones.
Analysts view Kim Ju-ae’s presence at the mausoleum—an event closely associated with legitimacy and leadership continuity—as a deliberate signal ahead of an upcoming ruling Workers’ Party congress, where succession issues could be discussed.
Cheong Seong-chang, vice president of the Sejong Institute think tank, described the visit as a calculated step by Kim Jong-un to elevate his daughter’s political status. Meanwhile, Hong Min, a North Korea expert at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said state media appearances of Kim with his wife and daughter are aimed at projecting an image of a “stable ruling family.”Kim Ju-ae has appeared with her father at key military and national events over the past three years, prompting South Korea’s intelligence agency and several analysts to suggest she could become North Korea’s fourth-generation leader.
However, experts caution against drawing definitive conclusions. Hong noted that Kim is believed to be around 13 years old and is not yet eligible to join the Workers’ Party, making a formal designation unlikely at this stage. The existence of Kim Jong-un’s other children further complicates succession assumptions. Believed to have been born in the early 2010s, Kim Ju-ae has attended recent New Year celebrations and, in September, accompanied her father to Beijing on her first known overseas visit. North Korea has never officially confirmed her age or status.
