Monday 28 November 2022 01:26 PM Kim Jong Un 'is lining daughter Ju-ae up as heir to North Korea' trends now
Kim Jong-un may have chosen his daughter as his heir, experts have said, after she appeared with the North Korean dictator in public for the second time.
Ju-ae, who is thought to be aged 10, was pictured smiling with her father as he awarded scientists and military officials responsible for building the country's latest nuke, the second time in a week she has been pictured in front of the missiles.
Ankit Panda, an expert in North Korea with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said the 'striking' images suggest Ju-ae is 'being positioned as a potential successor'.
Little is known about the girl, who is thought to be the middle of Kim's three children.
Kim Ju-ae, daughter of Kim Jong-un (pictured together), is likely being lined up as the heir to North Korea's dictatorship, experts have said
Kim Ju-ae has been pictured alongside her father and North Korea's nuclear weapons twice in a week, which seem calculated to project an image of power both at home and abroad
The first news of her existence emerged from retired US basketball player Dennis Rodman, who struck up an unlikely friendship with Kim early during his rule.
Rodman, who visited North Korea several times before his friendship with Kim hit the rocks, recalled meeting one of the dictator's children in 2013.
The sportsman said he spent time 'relaxing by the sea' with Kim and his wife, Ri Sol-ju, and was allowed to hold their baby daughter - who he said was called Ju-ae.
South Korean spies have previously said that Kim's eldest child, now thought to be aged 12, is a boy - though nothing else is known about him and he has never been seen in public.
The youngest child is believed to be a daughter, born around March 2017.
Ju-ae's sudden appearance alongside her father and North Korea's nuclear weapons appears calculated to project an image of power - both to the North Korean people and to the world.
State media's description of her as Kim's 'most beloved' and 'precious' child also give strong hints that she is the favourite to succeed him.
Mr Panda said: 'This is certainly striking. The photograph of Kim Ju Ae standing alongside her father while being celebrated by technicians and scientists involved in the latest ICBM launch would support the idea that this is the start of her being positioned as a potential successor.
'State media underscoring her father's love for her further underscores this, I think.
Little is known about Kim Ju-ae, who is thought to be aged around 10 and is thought to be the middle of three children Kim has with his wife, Ri Sol-ju
Kim Ju-ae (pictured with her father) almost certainly met with US basketball player Dennis Rodman when he visited North Korea in
