Kim Jong Un’s daughter makes Kumsusan Palace visit

Kim Jong Un’s daughter, Ju Ae, visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun on New Year’s Day in 2026. It marked her first known visit to the palace since she made her initial public appearance in November 2022 at the test launch site of the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile. Analysts said her position at the center of the front row underscored her status as a potential successor.

According to the Korean Central News Agency on Jan. 2, Kim visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun on New Year’s Day, accompanied by senior party, government and military officials. While North Korean state media did not mention Ju Ae by name, photographs released by the outlet showed her standing at the center of the front row. The Kumsusan Palace of the Sun houses the embalmed bodies of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and is widely regarded as a symbol of the legitimacy of the Mount Paektu bloodline succession.

North Korea has not officially named a successor to Kim, but as Ju Ae’s public appearances gradually increase, some analysts say she is building experience and a narrative as a potential heir. “Ju Ae’s first appearance at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, the most sacred site in the North Korean system, and her placement at the center of the procession amounted to a display of her stature as a potential successor,” said Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University. “The visit appeared to signal an effort to begin testing her political role in earnest starting in 2026.”

A South Korean government official said Seoul monitoring the situation with multiple possibilities in mind but cautioned that it remains too early to assess the development within a succession framework.


Oh-Hyuk Kwon hyuk@donga.com