Overview
- State media photos from the January 1 visit show Kim Ju Ae standing between her parents in the front row at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, marking her first publicly known tribute at the mausoleum.
- South Korea’s Unification Ministry confirmed this was the first time her presence at the site had been publicly disclosed and said it will closely monitor her activities.
- Analysts note her central placement and recent honorifics used in state media, including references such as “hyangdo” and “respected daughter,” as signs of an elevated profile.
- South Korea’s intelligence agency assessed last year that she is the likely successor, and experts see the timing as a signal ahead of an expected Workers’ Party congress in early 2026.
- Her age remains unconfirmed but is estimated in the early teens; her public debut came in 2022, and she accompanied her father to Beijing in September, with some observers cautioning her visibility may also project a family image rather than immediate formalization.