South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) has told lawmakers that Kim Ju-ae, the teenage daughter of Kim Jong Un, may be entering a “successor-designate stage”.

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Kim Ju Ae and her father on a visit to the Kangdong Greenhouse Farm in Pyongyang in March last year. | Credit: Korean Central News Agency / Korea News ...

Kim Ju-ae, 13, is not yet a successor to North Korea's Kim Jong Un , nor has she been designated as one. She is simply a dictator's daughter.

Rigid patriarchy, the necessity of a male heir, and the threat of internal rivals ensure that the “Princess of Pyongyang” will remain a symbolic placeholder rather than a viable sovereign.

Kim Ju-ae, daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, took center stage with her father in photos displayed on an outdoor board at the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, amid speculation that she is being positioned as his successor.

Kim Ju Ae, the daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, took a central position alongside her father in photographs displayed on the exterior board of the North Korean embassy in Beijing.

Ju Ae is believed to be the only publicly acknowledged child of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his wife Ri Sol Ju. While intelligence agencies suspect the couple may have more children, Ju Ae remains the only one confirmed by state media and leadership.