South Korea’s top spy agency has informed lawmakers that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears to be grooming his teenage daughter, Kim Ju Ae, as a future leader of the isolated state, in what could mark a significant step toward dynastic succession within the ruling Kim family.
In a closed-door briefing to the National Assembly’s intelligence committee on Thursday, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said Ju Ae — believed to be in her early teens and the only publicly known child of Kim Jong Un and his wife Ri Sol-ju — has been increasingly visible at official events and may now be entering the “designated successor” stage of leadership transition.
Lawmakers cited by the agency noted that Ju Ae has attended high-profile ceremonies such as military anniversaries and visits to historically symbolic sites like the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where North Korea’s founding leaders are entombed. Such appearances, combined with signs that she has been heard voicing opinions on certain state policies, suggest to NIS that her public role is evolving beyond mere visibility.
The intelligence assessment represents an upgrade in language from earlier descriptions of Ju Ae as “being trained” for succession to a status where she is actively considered a designated heir, observers say.
The NIS will reportedly watch closely whether she appears at the upcoming Workers’ Party Congress later this month — the regime’s most important political gathering — and how she is presented in official protocols.
Kim Ju Ae first attracted international attention in 2022 when she appeared on North Korean state television alongside her father during a missile inspection. Since then, her public profile has grown, with state media frequently portraying her beside Kim Jong Un at major state occasions.
Despite these developments, North Korea has not formally named Ju Ae as successor in its official media, and analysts caution that internal dynamics within the regime — including the possible influence of Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, and the lack of an official title — make it uncertain whether her designation is fully finalized.
The secretive nature of North Korean politics means that definitive confirmation may only come with symbolic gestures or official announcements around the party congress.