North Korea Reveals Kim’s daughter At Missile Launch Site

(CTN NEWS) – SEOUL, South Korea – A 4th generation member of the dynastic family that has dominated North Korea for more than seven decades was given prominent attention when North Korea introduced the little-known daughter of its leader, Kim Jong Un, at a missile launch site.

The launch of the North’s brand-new intercontinental ballistic missile was witnessed by Kim, his wife Ri Sol Ju, their “dear daughter,” and other dignitaries, according to the North’s state media on Saturday.

The launch of the Hwasong-17 missile, the North’s longest-range, nuclear-capable missile, according to Kim, demonstrated that he had a dependable weapon to counter threats from the U.S.-led force.

A number of images showing Kim and his daughter watching a rocket take off from a distance were also made public by the leading Rodong Sinmun newspaper.

 

In other pictures, she can be seen walking hand in hand with her father past a sizable missile perched atop a launch truck while having her hair pulled back, a white coat, and red shoes.

It’s the first time the daughter has been mentioned or her images have been made public by North Korea’s state media. Her name and age were not included in the information that KCNA provided about her.

Kim’s private life is still mostly a mystery. However, South Korean media said that in 2009, Kim wed Ri, a former singer, and that the pair has three children, who were born in 2010, 2013, and 2017.

Which child Kim brought to the launch site was unknown.

But after visiting Pyongyang in 2013, retired NBA player Dennis Rodman said to the British newspaper the Guardian that he and Kim had a “relaxing time by the sea” with the leader’s family

And that Rodman had even cradled Kim’s infant daughter, Ju Ae.

Since the 38-year-old ruler hasn’t declared an heir apparent in public, the names of Kim’s children are a subject of intense attention from the outside world.

When he vanished from the public spotlight for a long time in 2020 amid unverified claims of health concerns, a media frenzy broke out over who would lead a poor but nuclear-armed nation next.

Many commentators predicted at the time that Kim Yo Jong, Kim’s younger sister, would take over as leader of the nation in the event that her brother fell ill.

Since Kim Il Sung, Kim’s grandfather, created North Korea in 1948, the Kim family has ruled the country with a strong personality cult centred around important family members.

Only immediate family members are permitted to lead the nation under the so-called Paektu bloodline, which bears the name of the North’s most revered mountain.

Professor Leif-Eric Easley of Seoul’s Ewha University stated, “It’s far too early to draw any conclusions regarding succession inside the Kim dictatorship.

However, Kim’s decision to openly involve his wife and daughter in what he describes as a historically successful missile launch links the North Korean government’s family business to the country’s missile programmes.

According to Easley, “this may be an effort to make up for how little economic successes Kim has to maintain his domestic legitimacy.”

If Kim continues to bring this daughter to important public occasions, analyst Cheong Seong-Chang of the exclusive Sejong Institute in South Korea believes that could be a sign that she will succeed her father.

“Under North Korea’s system, Kim Jong Un’s children would be treated as princes or princesses, much like in a dynasty.

She is forced to lead extraordinary lives since the Rodong Sinmnum daily published the portrait of the daughter, who so closely resembles Ri Sol Ju and Kim Jong Un, Cheong added.

Others claim that Kim’s decision to bring his family along to a missile test site showed that he had faith in the weapon’s success or that he was attempting to project the image of a family-oriented leader.

Numerous observers of North Korea were caught off guard by the revelation of the Kim family’s youngster.

Only in 2010 was Kim, then 26 years old, first made public in state media when he assumed a number of high-ranking positions before inheriting power following his father Kim Jong Il’s passing the following year.

When Kim Jong Il obtained a crucial position in the ruling Workers’ Party in 1973, he was also 31 years old. This appointment was viewed as a crucial step on the road to succeeding his father Kim Il Sung.

At the 1980 party congress, Kim Jong Il’s position as his successor was made public.

Cheong, however, claimed that Kim Jong Il privately informed friends in 1992 that his third and youngest son, Kim Jong Un, would succeed him.

Kim Jong Il declared Kim Jong Un to be his successor on his son’s eighth birthday, according to Cheong, who was informed of this by Kim’s aunt and her husband, who had fled to the United States.

Cheong speculated that Kim Jong Un would choose his daughter, who most closely resembles him in his mind, as his successor

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