North Korea’s next leader may be a teenage girl no one really knows

She might be barely a teenager, but the daughter of North Korea’s Kim Jong Un is drawing attention as the regime’s potential next leader.

Believed to be named Kim Ju Ae, the girl was back in the spotlight when she joined her father on his closely watched trip to China, his first major outing among world leaders and her first known overseas appearance.

State media images showed her glued to his side: stepping off a train in Beijing just ahead of Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, applauding as embassy staff bowed to her father, and later standing near him during meetings inside his personal train carriage.


As per AP, South Korea’s intelligence service told lawmakers on September 11 that the visit likely cemented her role as heir apparent.

She is thought to be 12 or 13. Beyond that, little is certain. Yet her steady presence at high-profile moments, missile launches, parades, naval ceremonies, has fuelled speculation she is being groomed for the top job.

According to lawmaker Park Sunwon, who attended a closed-door briefing, Kim may have brought his daughter to China “to help her acquire overseas experience and cement her status as his likely heir.” Another lawmaker, Lee Seong Kweun, noted that North Korean state outlets showcased her prominently for domestic audiences.

Her name and exact age remain unconfirmed. State media never identifies her, referring only to Kim’s “respected” or “most beloved” child. The widely used name Ju Ae comes from former NBA star Dennis Rodman, who recalled holding Kim’s infant daughter during a 2013 visit to Pyongyang.

South Korean officials believe she was born that same year. The agency has previously assessed that Kim and his wife Ri Sol Ju also have an older son and a younger, unidentified third child.

Her first public debut came in November 2022 at an intercontinental ballistic missile launch. Photos showed her in a white coat and red shoes, hand-in-hand with her father as they watched the missile soar. Since then, she’s become a fixture, at missile tests, parades, and even the launch of a naval destroyer in April. More recently, she’s been pictured at economic and cultural showcases, such as the opening of a beach resort in June.

Still, not everyone is convinced she will be the one to inherit power. South Korea’s intelligence agency maintains she is the “likely successor,” but outside experts point to Kim Jong Un’s relative youth and North Korea’s deeply male-dominated political culture.

The agency also reported this week that Kim appeared healthy and carried out his China engagements without difficulty.

Since 1948, North Korea has been ruled only by men of the Kim dynasty, Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il, and now Kim Jong Un, who took power in 2011 after his father’s death. Whether his daughter will be the one to break that precedent remains the looming question.

With inputs from AP