North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, traveled to Beijing this week to hobnob with the presidents of China and Russia, two of his nation’s key allies. But he seems to have had another purpose for the trip: introducing his daughter as his potential successor.
The daughter, Kim Ju-ae, accompanied Mr. Kim to Beijing, where he joined leaders from more than 20 countries at a military parade on Wednesday. After the special train carrying Mr. Kim’s entourage pulled into Beijing Railway Station on Tuesday, Ju-ae stood close to Mr. Kim as he was greeted by senior Chinese officials, according to photos released by North Korean state media.
It is the first overseas trip that Ju-ae is known to have taken with Mr. Kim.
Ju-ae, who is believed to be 12 years old, is the only child of Mr. Kim to have appeared in the North’s state media, which refers to her as “dear daughter.” Since late 2022, she has accompanied her father to military parades, weapons tests and other politically significant domestic events.
South Korean analysts have said that Mr. Kim appears to be grooming her as an heir, though they have also been careful not to jump to conclusions. The fact that he brought Ju-ae on his first trip to China in six years, and to a major gathering of international leaders, is a significant new sign of her rising status, some said.
Yang Moo-jin, a former president of the Seoul-based University of North Korean Studies, said the girl was going through the ritual of “introducing herself” to the leadership of China, North Korea’s most important ally.
The scene at the Beijing railway station “showed that she was being treated as No. 2 of North Korea not only at home but also abroad,” said Cheong Seong-chang, a North Korea expert at the Seoul-based Sejong Institute. “By taking her to China, Kim Jong-un is sending a strong signal to the world that she is going to be his successor.”
Although Mr. Kim was designated as the successor of his father, Kim Jong-il, at an early age, that status was kept secret until his father suffered a stroke in 2008.
Choe Sang-Hun is the lead reporter for The Times in Seoul, covering South and North Korea.
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