On New Year’s Day, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a public appearance alongside his daughter, Ju Ae, at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, a revered location that pays tribute to the nation’s founding figures.

State-run news agency KCNA released photographs capturing Ju Ae standing between her parents in the palace’s main hall. This public display has sparked discussions among analysts regarding her potential future in North Korea’s leadership structure.

Over the past three years, Ju Ae has increasingly been featured in state media, leading to speculation from observers and South Korean intelligence that she might be groomed as a possible successor to Kim Jong Un.

This appearance is part of a long-standing North Korean tradition where Kim Jong Un visits the mausoleum on significant dates and anniversaries to bolster the legitimacy of the country’s leadership lineage.

Accompanied by his wife Ri Sol Ju and their daughter Kim Ju Ae, Kim Jong Un visited Kumsusan Palace of the Sun to usher in the New Year in Pyongyang, North Korea, on January 1. (KCNA via Reuters)

North Korea has never confirmed Ju Ae’s age, and her exact age remains unknown, but she is believed to be around 12 or 13.

After being publicly introduced in North Korea in 2022, Ju Ae made her first public appearance outside of her home country while accompanying her father on a trip to Beijing in September, his first visit to China in years, a move analysts said may signal her role as North Korea’s heir-in-waiting.

Ju Ae’s existence was inadvertently revealed by retired NBA star Dennis Rodman over a decade ago in an interview with The Guardian.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and daughter Kim Ju Ae attended an event to celebrate the New Year in Pyongyang, North Korea. (KCNA via Reuters)

Rodman told reporters during a 2013 trip to Pyongyang he had “held the baby Ju Ae,” while calling Kim Jong Un a “good dad.”

Parenting expert Kirsty Ketley told Fox News Digital in September that placing Ju Ae in the global spotlight at a young age could have lasting consequences.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and daughter Kim Ju Ae attended an event to mark the New Year. (KCNA via Reuters)

“She’s being shaped into a role rather than being supported to figure out who she is as an individual, and that pressure could have a huge impact on her mental health,” she said.