- Luis Barrucho
- BBC International Correspondent
5 hours ago
image copyrightReuters
Image caption,
In 2022, the financial owner Ai (left) appeared in the public eye for the first time. This is a photo taken when she and her father Kim Jong-un (right) attended the banquet commemorating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People’s Army on February 7, 2023.
According to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS), the “most likely” successor to North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong Un is his teenage daughter. So, how much do we know about Kim Ju Ae? How likely is it that she will one day replace her father?
Kim Jong-un is very secretive about his family affairs, so little is known about them. He even hid his wife for a while after marrying Lee Sol-ju – she didn’t make her first public appearance until 2012. Korean media once reported that the two got married in 2009 and gave birth to a child in 2010. It is believed that the gold master Ai was also born to Li Xuezhu, which happened a few years later.
The existence of the financial sponsor was made public in 2013, when retired American basketball star Dennis Rodman’s trip to North Korea caused controversy.
Rodman said he spent relaxing time with the Kim family at the beach and “cuddled their babies.” He called the baby “Lord’s Love” (transliteration).
image copyrightEPA
Image caption,
At the beginning of the new year in 2024, Kim Jong-un (middle) takes his gold master Ai (right) to inspect the strategic missile launcher truck at an important military rack truck factory in Pyongyang. The official Korean Central News Agency described it as “the distinguished daughter accompanied the inspection.”
Fyodor Tertitskiy, who studies North Korean politics at Kookmin University in Seoul, said even North Korea’s state media only “acknowledged that she was Kim Jong Un’s daughter without mentioning her name or age”.
He added: “Nothing else is known, at least publicly.” He estimated that the donor’s age was between 10 and more than ten years old.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told a group of politicians at a closed-door briefing last year that Kim Jong-ae had never enrolled in a formal educational institution but was educated at home in Pyongyang.
The agency also said her interests included horse riding, swimming and skiing. One of those who attended the briefing later told reporters that Kim was particularly pleased with his daughter’s riding skills.
The agency said she had an older brother and a younger sibling, but they could not confirm their gender. The two siblings, whom the donor loves, have never been seen in public.
image copyrightReuters
Image caption,
Kim Jong-un (middle) takes his sponsor Ai (right) to inspect the Gwangcheon Chicken Factory in Hwangchon County, North Hwanghae Province, not far from Pyongyang.
public appearance
She and her father kissed each other on the cheek at the “2024 May Day Stadium in Pyongyang” held recently at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang.
In December 2023, they attended the test launch of the “Mars Cannon-18” solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) – the country’s most advanced long-range missile currently. In November, she also attended the launch of the “Wanlijing-1” spy satellite with her father. Pyongyang has claimed that this would allow Kim Jong Un to have a full view of the White House.
In February 2023, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported that the North Korean government ordered anyone named Kim Lord Ai to change their name, saying it was standard practice for the ruling dynasty.
North Korea observers also point out that Kim’s love is now addressed as “respected daughter” rather than “respected”. In North Korea, the adjective “respected” is reserved for the most respected people.
In the case of Kim Jong-un, his being called “Dear Comrade Kim Jong-un” did not happen until his status as future leader was established.
image copyrightReuters
Image caption,
In May 2023, Kim Jong-un took his daughter to the “Extraordinary Satellite Launch Preparatory Committee” to “guide the work.”
Candidate for successor?
North Korea is deeply isolated from the outside world, and the outside world has no way of knowing why the financial leader’s love appears more and more frequently with his father.
North Korean citizens were told that the Kim family had divine blood and that only they could lead the country. Some analysts suggest that introducing her to the public at such a young age may be a way for the North Korean leader to ensure that his daughter is on a firm footing before taking over power.
There are currently no signs that a succession of power will occur anytime soon, and previous rumors about Kim Jong-un’s poor health have been denied.
Others say this may be Kim Jong-un’s way of showing that he is a family man in North Korea’s deeply patriarchal society.
Dr Edward Howell, lecturer in politics at Oxford University and an expert on Korean Peninsula affairs, said: “During the era of former leaders Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung, much political propaganda focused on the image of the North Korean leader as a parent. . So I think by creating the image of her following her father in public, that symbolism continues.”
Since the founding of North Korea in 1948, the country has been ruled by men from the Kim family. If Ai succeeds her father one day, she will become the country’s first female leader.
But Howell said: “For the North Korean leadership, it is extremely important to have the blood of the Kim family, so women from the Kim family are always better than outsiders from the Kim family.”
image copyrightReuters
Image caption,
In January 2024, Kim Jong-un and his sponsor Ae inspected the eggs produced by the Gwangcheon Chicken Factory.
He believes that there is another potential successor to Kim Jong-un – Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong. She was first mentioned by official media in March 2014 and currently holds an important position in the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea.
Howell said: “She is much older than Kim Ai and is obviously more experienced in North Korea’s state affairs. Therefore, whether it is a daughter or a sister who takes over, although they are both women, it is crucial to have the blood of the Kim family.”
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service also said that because there are “many variables” at present, Kim Jong-un is still considering “all possibilities.”
image copyrightReuters
Image caption,
In March 2023, Kim Jong-un and Kim Jong-un inspected “nuclear counterattack hypothetical comprehensive tactical training” including missile test launches at an unknown location.
Researcher Tertitsky believes that Kim Jong-un is “testing public and elite opinions on a possible power succession” by exposing his financial backers, which he said usually does not occur before a succession is confirmed.
He agreed that it was too early to discuss who would be Kim Jong-un’s successor.
He said: “For example, if he (Kim Jong-un) died at the age of 70 like his father (Kim Jong-il), it would be in 2054. Even if we assume that the country of North Korea can survive until that time with its current structure, Society may be very different from what it is now.”
He added: “Furthermore, everyone must be aware that accepting gender equality in daily life and accepting a female leader are two different things.”
2024-01-21 03:23:55
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