According to lawmakers on Monday, South Korea’s intelligence service believes that Kim Jong Un’s teenage daughter is being groomed to be his successor. They based this on what they called “credible intelligence.”
According to members of both the government and opposition parties, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) gave the assessment during a closed-door briefing to parliament. The agency said that the girl’s recent public appearances, including as pictures of her operating a military tank, were planned to show that she was ready to lead.
Lawmakers said the exhibition was meant to boost her military credentials and ease doubts about the possibility of a woman taking control in the secretive state. The NIS stressed that its judgment was based on facts from intelligence, not just guesses.
Kim Ju Ae has been appearing more and more with her father at defense-related events in North Korean state media. Recent pictures show her using guns and taking part in military drills. Analysts claim these actions are similar to how Kim Jong Un was groomed in public before he took over from his father.
Briefings say that her increasing prominence shows that she may already be seen as the regime’s de facto second-in-command. The spy agency also said that rumors that Kim Yo Jong, the leader’s powerful sister, could be against the progress were false because she does not have her own power.
Some experts, on the other hand, have said to be careful when interpreting the changes. Some analysts say that Kim Ju Ae’s appearances suggest that there may be plans for her to take over, but they don’t prove it. She hasn’t yet been in charge of anything on her own, unlike her father while he was rising to power.
The most recent information shows that she is no longer only being groomed, but that Pyongyang may potentially be actively crafting a succession story around her.
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