North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has chosen his daughter as his successor, according to a statement made by South Korea’s intelligence agency to lawmakers on Thursday.

As reported by the BBC, little is known about Kim Ju Ae, who in recent months has been photographed beside her father at major events, such as the visit to Beijing last September, which was also her first known trip abroad.

The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said it took into account “a number of circumstances,” including her increasingly visible public presence at official events, in reaching this conclusion.

On Thursday, lawmaker Lee Seong-kwen told reporters that Kim Ju Ae, who had previously been described by the NIS as “being trained” to become a successor, is now at the stage of being “designated as successor.”

“As Kim Ju Ae has appeared at various events, including the anniversary of the founding of the Korean People’s Army and a visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, and as signs have been detected that she is expressing her views on certain state policies, the NIS believes she has now entered the stage of being appointed as successor,” the lawmaker said.

The NIS also emphasized that it will closely monitor whether she attends North Korea’s party congress later this month, the largest political event held in the country every five years.

At the party congress, Pyongyang is expected to provide more details about its priorities for the next five years, such as foreign policy, military planning, and nuclear ambitions.

Another lawmaker, Park Sun-won, said that the role Ju Ae has taken on during public events shows that she has begun contributing to policymaking and is being treated as the de facto second leader.

Power in North Korea has passed through three generations of the Kim family, and it is widely accepted that Kim Jong Un will hand the throne to Ju Ae.

In recent months, she has been depicted standing taller than her father and walking beside him rather than following behind him.

In North Korea, where photographs released by state media are considered to carry great symbolic meaning, it is rare for individuals other than Kim Jong Un himself to be positioned so prominently in the frame.

Mystery surrounding Kim Jong Un’s choice

Nevertheless, questions remain regarding the issue of succession.

It is unclear why Ju Ae, a daughter, would be chosen as successor over an older son in North Korea’s deeply patriarchal society.

In previous years, many analysts had dismissed the idea of a woman leading North Korea as an unlikely scenario due to the country’s traditional gender roles.

However, Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, serves as an example of a woman holding power within the regime. Kim Yo Jong holds a senior position in the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea and is reportedly highly influential over her brother.

Still, it also remains a mystery why Kim Jong Un, who is still young and appears relatively healthy, is already designating a 13-year-old child as his successor.

Kim Jong Un’s beloved child

Ju Ae, who is estimated to be 13 years old, was first seen publicly in 2022, accompanying her father to a missile launch.

However, it was former NBA star and friend of the North Korean leader Dennis Rodman who revealed that Kim Jong Un has a daughter.

Kim reportedly introduced his wife and a child to Rodman during the latter’s visit to Pyongyang in 2013, saying, “This is my daughter.”

North Korean state media have never revealed her name, but they have described her as a “beloved child” and “respected.”

South Korean intelligence services claim she is Ju Ae, the daughter of Kim Jong Un and his wife, former singer and First Lady Ri Sol Ju, whom he married in 2009.

In her recent appearances, she is seen walking beside her father and ahead of her aunt, Kim Yo Jong, and her mother.

Ju Ae has drawn attention with her style, wearing Gucci sunglasses and Cartier watches, while also imitating her father’s look with leather jackets.

At the same time, the NIS estimates that Kim Jong Un has an older son, but this son has never been acknowledged nor appeared in North Korean media.

Her “debut” on the international stage

By accompanying her father to Beijing, Ju Ae “in a way made her official debut to the outside world,” notes Yang Moo-jin, former president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.

However, the academic points out that Ju Ae has already “participated in military and diplomatic events, particularly at a reception at the Russian embassy.”

This transition from the national to the international stage may signal “the final stage toward succession,” he adds.

If Ju Ae succeeds Kim Jong Un, she will be the first woman to lead the country since its founding in 1948.

Experts believe this is a maneuver by the Kim family to promote Ju Ae.

“This is not just a simple family trip, but in reality her ‘entry onto the stage as successor,’” according to Lim Eul-chul, professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University.

In the past, he argues, “we have seen heirs generally consolidate their position by going to China or participating in international events in order to gain legitimacy from socialist powers.”

The professor cites as an example the meeting between Kim Jong Il, who was set to succeed Kim Il Sung, and Xi Zhongxun, father of Xi Jinping, in Beijing in 1983.

“Ju Ae’s case fits into this trajectory,” he adds.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) first acknowledged in 2024 that Ju Ae may be the regime’s heir.

“According to an analysis of Kim Ju Ae’s public appearances and the protocol level granted to her, she currently appears to be the most likely successor,” said Cho Tae-yong, then head of the agency.

Cheong Seong-chang of the Sejong Institute in Seoul recounts that “during a military parade, Ju Ae’s white horse appeared in second position after Kim Jong Un’s.”

“This is evidence” that she will succeed him, he says, as is the fact that Pyongyang “issued postage stamps depicting the father-daughter pair.”