Korea, Dec 02 : North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s teenage daughter, Ju-ae, has paid tribute at the family mausoleum for the first time, state media images showed on Friday. The visit, alongside her father and mother, took place at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of North Korea’s founder Kim Il-sung and former leader Kim Jong-il lie in state.
The visit, on New Year’s Day, marked Ju-ae’s first known appearance at the mausoleum since she was introduced in North Korean media in 2022. In photographs released by state media, Ju-ae was seen standing in the center, flanked by her parents, with key party and government officials in attendance.
While the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not explicitly mention Ju-ae’s presence, it reported that all attendees pledged “to fulfill their responsibility and duty in the vanguard of accomplishing the sacred cause for the eternal prosperity and development of the great DPRK and the promotion of the people’s well-being, true to the ideas and leadership of Kim Jong Un with single-minded loyalty.”
Analysts note the visit fuels speculation about Ju-ae’s role in North Korea’s succession plans. Seoul’s unification ministry confirmed the significance of the event, calling it the first publicly known visit by Kim’s daughter to the mausoleum. “We are closely watching as it is the first such visit,” said Chang Yoon-jeong, deputy spokesperson at the ministry, adding that authorities will continue monitoring Ju-ae’s activities.
On Thursday, Ju-ae was also seen accompanying her parents at a large scale New Year celebration in Pyongyang. Footage aired by Korean Central Television showed her sitting next to Kim, holding his hand, whispering to him, and giving him a kiss on the cheek after the New Year countdown. Dressed in a leather coat matching her father’s, her public appearances underline her emerging visibility within the ruling Kim family.
Kim Jong-un has a tradition of paying respects at the mausoleum on New Year’s Day, though he skipped visits in 2018, 2024, and 2025. This latest appearance, with Ju-ae, marks a notable moment in the North Korean leadership’s public family narrative.