Kim Jong-un revealing daughter for first time shows his confidence, experts say

By: 3 years ago

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stands with his daughter at a missile launch site in this photo released by the Korean Central 好色先生TV Agency on Saturday. (Yonhap via The Korea Herald/Asia 好色先生TV Network)

SEOUL 鈥� North Korean leader Kim Jong-un revealed his daughter to the world for the first time on Saturday, in photos of him holding a young girl鈥檚 hand as he inspected the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile. Experts say the unexpected event manifests Kim鈥檚 confidence in his missile program, and that it could possibly signal the beginning of her training for leadership succession.

The Korean Central 好色先生TV Agency, Pyongyang鈥檚 state media, said on Saturday Kim observed the test-firing of Hwasong-17 ICBM on the previous day, with his wife Ri Sol-ju and 鈥渂eloved daughter鈥� 鈥� officially confirming her existence for the first time.

On Sunday, the KCNA released additional photos of Kim and his daughter visiting the missile test site on Friday.

In the photos, Kim is seen observing the regime鈥檚 largest missile launch while holding hands with a young girl in a white jacket and red shoes.

The KCNA reported that Pyongyang launched the 鈥渘ew鈥� missile from Pyongyang International Airfield, and it flew 999.2 kilometers for 4,135 seconds at an apogee of 6,040.9 kilometers. The missile landed in the international waters of the East Sea, the news agency said.

鈥淭he test-fire clearly proved the reliability of the new major strategic weapon system to be representative of the DPRK鈥檚 strategic forces and its powerful combat performance as the strongest strategic weapon in the world,鈥� KCNA said in an English-language report. DPRK stands for Democratic People鈥檚 Republic of Korea, the official name of North Korea.

According to assessments by Seoul and Tokyo, Pyongyang appears to have succeeded in advancing its ICBM to fly far enough to hit the US mainland.

The launch was a countermeasure to the 鈥渞eckless military confrontational moves of the US and other hostile forces鈥� that drive regional security to the 鈥渞ed line,鈥� going beyond the limit, the KCNA also said.

Pyongyang has been critical of South Korea and the US for conducting joint military drills involving American strategic assets, such as B-1B and B-52 bombers and a nuclear powered aircraft carrier, saying they undermine the regime鈥檚 authority.

Experts view Kim鈥檚 first revelation of his daughter as a sign of his confidence in the advancement of the missile program. At the same time, it possibly hints at Kim鈥檚 intent to hand over leadership to his bloodline, experts say.

Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification鈥檚 North Korean research division, suggested that the North Korean leader bringing his family to watch the missile launch is intended to show off his confidence in the stable operation of the Hwaseong-17.

鈥淚t shows that (Hwaseong-17) is an important asset that guarantees the safety of the future generation,鈥� Hong said.

If the North Korean leader expected the missile launch would fail, he would not have brought his wife and daughter to the test site, Lim Eul-chul, a professor of North Korean studies at Kyungnam University in Seoul, said.

Michael Madden, a North Korea expert at the US-based Stimson Center said the first public appearance of Kim鈥檚 daughter is 鈥渉ighly significant.鈥�

鈥淚t is highly significant and represents a certain degree of comfort on Kim Jong-un鈥檚 part that he would bring her out in public in such fashion.鈥�

According to Madden, Ju-ae is believed to be aged between 12 and 13, and she would likely be preparing to attend a university or go into military service in four to five years.

鈥淭his would indicate that she will be educated and trained to go into leadership 鈥� it could be preparing for her to assume the central leader鈥檚 position, or she could become an adviser and behind-the-scenes player like her aunt,鈥� he said, adding Kim may be showing his intent about the fourth-generation power succession.

While very little is known about Kim鈥檚 family, the girl revealed on Saturday is believed to be the oldest daughter of Kim, who is believed to have as many as three children 鈥� two girls and a boy.

Retired American basketball star Dennis Rodman mentioned that Kim has a daughter named Ju-ae in a 2013 interview, following a visit to North Korea. Rodman said he had spent time with Kim鈥檚 family, and had 鈥渉eld their baby Ju-ae.鈥�

Last week鈥檚 launch of the ICBM is the eighth this year, and came about two weeks after the last test-fire on Nov. 3, which was observed to have ended in failure.