Shots, missile test and more: Kim Jong-un’s ‘roll’ with 13-year-old daughter goes viral on social media and reinforces succession rumors

Kim Ju Ae appears alongside her father Kim Jong Un at official North Korean government events. KCNA via Reuters You know that day when there is no one to watch the children and they end up having to go to their parents’ work? Something similar seems to be happening with Kim Jong-un: the North Korean leader has been taking his daughter, identified as Kim Ju-ae and around 13 years old, to official events. Since the end of 2022, the teenager has started to appear alongside her father in military parades, weapons tests and other regime events. The images spread across social media and began to be interpreted by analysts and users as possible signs of preparation for a succession. 🔍 The girl’s name and age are not confirmed by state media, amid the regime’s strong secrecy and the political strategy surrounding the succession of the family that governs the country. The last appearance of the two occurred during a pistol test during a visit to a munitions factory, according to the state news agency KCNA. The agenda took place on Wednesday (11). During the visit to the weapons factory, both were wearing black leather jackets. In an image distributed by state media, Ju-ae appears participating in a shooting exercise alongside military officers. Kim Jong-un and Kim Ju-ae, daughter of the North Korean president, firing a pistol during a visit to the ammunition factory in North Korea on March 11, 2026. KCNA/Korea News Service via AP ‘Rolê’ in missile test Last Wednesday (11), the country’s state media also publicized another moment between father and daughter. This time, the girl accompanied the North Korean leader during a test of cruise missiles fired from a warship. Footage sent by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) showed the two in a conference room, watching a screen displaying weapons launches from the Choe Hyon, a one-year-old destroyer. Kim watched the missile launches via video on Tuesday and emphasized the need to maintain “a powerful and credible nuclear deterrence strategy,” KCNA said in a statement that did not mention his daughter. Next to his daughter, Kim Jong-un watches North Korea’s missile test Visit to the family mausoleum Every year, Kim visits the family mausoleum, where the country’s former leaders are buried. This year, for the first time, the girl participated in the visit with her parents, in the space where the tombs of the country’s former leaders are located. The visit, which took place on January 1st this year, was seen, once again, by experts, as a sign that she may be prepared to take command of the country in the future. Kim Jong-un watches North Korea’s missile and cruise test alongside his daughter Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP Kim Jong-un usually visits the Kumsusan mausoleum on important dates to honor his grandfather, Kim Il Sung, founder of the country, and his father, Kim Jong Il. These visits reinforce the tradition of power passed down from generation to generation in North Korea. For Hong Min, an expert on North Korea at the Korean Institute for National Unification, linked to the South Korean government, the regime tries to show an image of a “stable family” by showing off the leader’s wife and daughter at large public events. Military parade commemorating the Ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), in Pyongyang. KCNA via Reuters Party Congress In February this year, the girl participated in the Korean Workers’ Party Congress and watched a military parade during the closing of the event. The party congress is held every five years and is North Korea’s most important political event. READ ALSO: Who is Kim Jong-un’s daughter, his ‘most likely’ successor in North Korea? Kim Ju Ae appears between her father and mother during New Year celebrations. KCNA via REUTERS New Year festivities The daughter’s presence at the New Year festivities is to be expected, if it weren’t for the bet that she could be the successor to the North Korean leader. The girl appeared in a photo alongside her father and mother, Ri Sol Ju. In addition to fireworks, the family and senior North Korean government officials enjoyed an ice dancing performance, according to state media KCNA. Kim Ju-ae and Kim Jong-un in North Korea KCNA via Reuters Tour in China In September last year, Kim Jong-un took his daughter to Beijing, on her first public trip abroad. The presence once again fueled speculation that the young woman could succeed her father as head of the North Korean regime. North Korea has never revealed the daughter’s name or age, but South Korean intelligence officials believe she is Kim Ju-ae. She was identified in 2013 by former American basketball player Dennis Rodman, who visited the Kim family and said he had held the girl as a baby. Ju-ae appeared right behind her father when disembarking the armored train used for the night journey between Pyongyang and the Chinese capital. Kim Jong-un participated in a military parade in Beijing to commemorate Japan’s defeat in World War II. It was the first time that Ju-ae accompanied her father outside the country, something that neither Kim Jong-un himself, when he was young, nor her aunt — a powerful figure in Pyongyang — did in similar situations. “She is gaining valuable experience greeting and interacting with foreign leaders,” said Michael Madden, an expert on North Korean leadership at the Stimson Center in the United States. North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un, his wife Ri Sol Ju and their daughter Kim Ju-Ae attend a banquet with army generals in Pyongyang, North Korea, on February 7, 2023 KCNA via Reuters Kim Jong-un takes daughter to watch North Korea’s missile test Reuters

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