North Korea leader 'in hurry' to highlight his daughter to show his will for succession: minister

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un talks with North Korean Navy Commander Adm. Kim Myong-sik, right, with the leader’s daughter, Ju-ae, sitting in the middle during their congratulatory visit to the anniversary of the Navy on Aug. 28, in this image captured from the North's Korean Central Television, Aug. 29. Yonhap

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appears to have been "in a hurry" to bring his daughter to the forefront in a bid to demonstrate his commitment to the third hereditary power succession, Seoul's top point man on Pyongyang said Wednesday.

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho made the assessment amid speculation that frequent public appearances by Kim's daughter, believed to be named Ju-ae, may indicate she could be anointed to succeed her father.

"The North Korean leader appears to be in a hurry to highlight his daughter in an indication that he is trying to demonstrate his will for succession in the face of difficulties (facing the North)," Kim said in a meeting with reporters at a hotel in Yangpyeong, about 40 kilometers east of Seoul.

The minister said there are "signs" that North Korea has been facing multiple difficulties, citing a series of closures of its diplomatic missions and a food shortage.

Kim called on the North's leader to shift the focus of state policy to measures to improve people's livelihoods from military-focused policy at a key party meeting set for later this month.

North Korea plans to hold a plenary meeting of the central committee of the ruling Workers' Party late this month in a bid to review its 2023 policy measures and unveil its policy lines for next year.

"(The North's leader) should make a bold decision for the economy and people's livelihoods by realizing that it is impossible to catch the two rabbits of the military and the economy," the minister said.

Meanwhile, a senior official at the unification ministry said Kim Ju-ae appears to have emerged "at an early stage" in the process of a hereditary succession.

In a party congress in 2021, North Korea newly awarded the title of general secretary to Kim Jong-un and created the posts of seven secretaries, including the first secretary.

The first secretary of the Workers' Party could assume Kim Jong-un's role when the general secretary cannot perform his duty.

"The position of the first secretary has been vacant. This could be in consideration of Kim Ju-ae," the official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

Ju-ae, believed to be around 10 years old, made her first public appearance on Nov. 18, 2022, when she, along with her father, attended the firing of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile.

Unification Minister Kim earlier left open the possibility that Ju-ae could be an heir apparent to succeed Kim Jong-un.

Kim Jong-un took over the communist country following the death of his father, Kim Jong-il, in 2011. The late Kim inherited power from his father, the country's founder, Kim Il-sung, who died in 1994. (Yonhap)