Kim Jong Un's Daughter May Become North Korean Leader
- Dailymail.co.uk
North Korea – The daughter of Kim Jong Un, Kim Ju Ae may become the North Korean Leader like her father, according to South Korea's spy agency NIS.
Ju Ae was first identified as Kim’s daughter in 2013, after former basketball star Dennis Rodman accidentally revealed her name by indicating he held Kim’s “baby” daughter during a visit to Pyongyang.
The North’s state media has referred to her as a “most beloved” or “respected” child of Mr. Kim and has shown military generals and other high-ranking officials kneeling before her.
VIVA Militer: Kim Jong-un dan putrinya, Ju-Ae
- kcna.co.jp
Such scenes have triggered widespread speculation among outside analysts that the daughter was being groomed as heir apparent to her father.
But until now, the South Korean government has been cautious in speculating about the girl’s status within Pyongyang’s secretive regime.
South Korean officials have said that although the dynastic rule of the Kim family would probably continue in the North after Mr. Kim’s death, they were not sure which child would succeed him, as quoted by New York Times site.
Mr. Kim had another child younger than Ju-ae, according to South Korean officials. They said they were checking intelligence that Mr. Kim may also have a child older than Ju-ae who might be a son. So far, Ju-ae is the only child of Mr. Kim known to have appeared in public.
“As of now, Kim Ju-ae is seen as the most likely successor,” the National Intelligence Agency, South Korea’s main government-run spy agency, said in an assessment released on Thursday through a member of the National Assembly.
The assessment was included in written answers the agency provided to questions from Youn Kun Young, a member of the Assembly’s intelligence committee.
But the agency cautioned that it was also considering “all possibilities” in the North’s succession plan, given “many variables.”
