By Uzma Ehtasham
North Korea has long captivated the world with its secrecy, rigid hierarchies, and the almost mythic persona of its leaders. The announcement, according to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, that Kim Jong Un has designated his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, as his successor, represents a startling moment in the country’s opaque political landscape. It is a development that is at once symbolic, strategic, and profoundly challenging to the global understanding of Pyongyang’s inner workings.
At just 13 years old, Kim Ju Ae’s elevation signals a deliberate and carefully orchestrated preparation for a transfer of power that few outside the inner circle of the regime could have anticipated. While North Korea has long maintained dynastic continuity, passing leadership through male heirs for three generations, the public grooming of a young daughter marks a subtle but significant departure from convention. Analysts in Seoul have pointed to the increasingly prominent role Ju Ae has played at official events over the past year as clear signals that the regime is laying the groundwork for her eventual rise.
Her appearances are far from ceremonial. In 2022, Ju Ae first appeared on state television alongside her father, inspecting an intercontinental ballistic missile while holding Kim Jong Un’s hand—a scene heavy with symbolism. Since then, she has been photographed at military and political events, including China’s grand military parade in Beijing. Notably, she has frequently been pictured standing beside her father, rather than behind him, a gesture that North Korea’s highly controlled media ecosystem interprets as a mark of significance. In a society where image is a carefully curated tool of power, the subtlety of placement in photographs is often read as a public signal of influence. Ju Ae’s position at the forefront hints at a growing weight in state affairs.
South Korean lawmakers, drawing on intelligence from the National Intelligence Service, have been cautious but deliberate in framing the narrative. Lee Seong-kwen told reporters that Ju Ae had moved beyond the stage of being merely “trained” as a successor; she has now entered the realm of official “successor designation.” The young heir’s involvement in events commemorating the founding of the Korean People’s Army and visits to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun further reinforce the notion that she is not a symbolic presence alone but is being gradually integrated into the mechanisms of statecraft. Park Sun-won, another South Korean lawmaker, suggested that her public visibility points to a role in shaping policy and that she is being treated as the de facto second-in-command.
Observers outside North Korea have long speculated about the potential for dynastic succession, but the announcement raises a series of complex questions. How will the political establishment of a deeply patriarchal state respond to a female heir? How will rival factions within the Korean Workers’ Party, the military, and the security services reconcile loyalty to a girl whose authority is derived almost entirely from bloodline? And crucially, how might this move be perceived internationally, particularly by the United States, South Korea, and China, which closely monitor Pyongyang’s military and nuclear strategies?
The timing of Ju Ae’s grooming is particularly notable as the country approaches its five-yearly party congress, where priorities for foreign policy, military strategy, and nuclear development are typically outlined. The congress, scheduled later this month, offers a platform for Ju Ae’s emergence to be subtly reinforced, signaling continuity within the Kim dynasty while projecting a calculated image of stability to both domestic and international audiences. Analysts will be watching closely to see whether she attends, how she is positioned, and whether she participates in any capacity that suggests influence over state policy.
In many ways, Kim Ju Ae’s rise reflects the enduring centrality of the Kim family in North Korean governance. For over seventy years, power has been consolidated within a tight dynastic circle, blending ideological indoctrination, familial loyalty, and political ruthlessness. Each successive generation has been meticulously prepared to inherit not just authority but the aura of infallibility that sustains the regime. That Ju Ae, a girl, has been identified as the next heir underscores both the flexibility and the rigidity of the system: while the regime can adapt to circumstances, including the absence of a publicly acknowledged male heir, it remains firmly wedded to dynastic continuity.
Yet the announcement cannot be divorced from its symbolic dimension. North Korea’s media carefully constructs narratives of strength, unity, and legitimacy, and the choice of a daughter is not a trivial one. In a society where women’s roles are heavily circumscribed, the public presentation of Ju Ae as the designated successor challenges long-standing norms while simultaneously reaffirming the supremacy of the family line. Her presence at key military and political events, often in a position of near parity with Kim Jong Un, serves both as a domestic rehearsal of authority and as a signal to external observers that the regime’s leadership will remain within the Kim family, regardless of gender.
(The writer is a public health professional, journalist, and possesses expertise in health communication, having keen interest in national and international affairs, can be reached at uzma@metro-morning.com)
