According to photos released by the state news agency KCNA, Kim Ju-ae paid homage to former leaders at the mausoleum, a move seen by analysts as symbolically significant ahead of a possible leadership-related event.
Standing between her father Kim Jong-un and her mother Ri Sol-ju, Ju-ae took a central position at the resting place of her grandfather and great-grandfather. The site is regarded as the most sacred political shrine of the Kim family and a core symbol of the regime’s so-called Paektu bloodline legitimacy.
Over the past three years, Ju-ae has made increasingly frequent and prominent public appearances. She recently attended New Year celebrations in Pyongyang with her father and, in September, accompanied him to Beijing on her first publicly acknowledged overseas visit.
Some analysts believe these appearances indicate her gradual elevation as a potential fourth-generation leader of North Korea. Cheong Seong-chang, vice-president of the Sejong Institute, described Ju-ae’s first public visit to the Kumsusan palace as a calculated move by Kim Jong-un ahead of the Ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea, where her succession could be formalised.
However, other experts have urged caution. Hong Min from the Korea Institute for National Unification said the appearance may simply be an attempt to project an image of family stability. He also noted that Kim Jong-un has other children and argued it would be highly unusual to publicly designate a successor believed to be around 13 years old and not yet eligible for party membership.
