Kim is just 41, but preparing a successor makes sense: He has a family history of heart trouble; he’s about 5-foot-7 and weighs about 310 pounds, according to South Korean intelligence officials. They added that he had unhealthy habits, including chain-smoking, heavy wining and dining, and frequently staying up until early mornings to surf the internet, where he likes to browse weapons websites.
Kim Jong-un introduced his daughter to the world in November 2022 with a show of affection and menace, holding her hand in front of an intercontinental ballistic missile. Since then, state media has shown Kim Ju-ae more and more prominently next to her father, the leader of North Korea. Now she is being hailed as a “great person of guidance” — a sign, experts say, that she is perhaps being groomed to take the reins of the isolated, nuclear-armed regime one day.
She holds no known official title in North Korea. The outside world has never heard her voice. The North’s state media has not even named her, referring to her only as the “most beloved,” “respected” or “dear” daughter of its leader.
But intelligence officials and analysts consider her to be her father’s most likely successor. She is believed to be just 12. We studied Ju-ae’s public appearances since her debut three years ago to trace her transformation from a shy girl by her father’s side to a poised public figure who shares center stage with him.
