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Kim Jong Un visited a North Korean light ammunition factory this Wednesday and tested a newly added pistol to the production alongside his teenage daughter Kim Ju Ae, according to images released by the state agency KCNA. Both fired the weapons at an indoor shooting range, accompanied by high-ranking military officials. The information was published by the New York Post, which featured the images released by the North Korean official agency.
The North Korean leader described the weapon as of "very good quality" after testing it and emphasized that the factory is crucial for supplying pistols and light weapons to the country's military and security forces. He also urged for an expansion of production capacity and modernization of the manufacturing lines. Although the official KCNA text did not explicitly mention Kim Ju Ae, the photographs released by the agency show her shooting alongside her father and officials.
It is not the first time in recent weeks that the dictator's daughter has appeared wielding weapons in public. On February 27, following the Ninth Congress of the Workers' Party, KCNA released images of Kim Ju Ae shooting a rifle in public, dressed in a brown leather coat similar to her father's, a symbol of authority in the North Korean regime.
The scene evokes memories of other dictatorships that have turned weapons into symbols of power, including the Cuban one. Fidel Castro spent decades building a public image that was inseparable from the rifle, from the Sierra Maestra to his speeches in the Plaza de la Revolución. In both regimes, weapons are not just military instruments but also symbols of dynastic legitimacy and continuity of power.
Who is Kim Ju Ae, the daughter of Kim Jong Un?
The increasing visibility of Kim Ju Ae as a possible heir to the regime —around 13 years old— in military settings has intensified speculations about her preparation as a successor. The National Intelligence Service of South Korea (NIS) confirmed in February 2026 that Kim Jong Un positions her as the most prominent figure after the leader of the regime. According to NIS analysts, the young girl has made over 50 public appearances, with 70% of them taking place in military facilities.
Her first public appearance was in November 2022, during the launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-17. Since then, she has accompanied her father during missile tests, inspections of nuclear submarines, and party events. In January 2023, state media North Korean referred to her as "respected daughter," a term historically reserved for the regime's elites.
Kim Jong Un's daughter gains prominence in the succession
The visit to the factory took place a day after Kim Jong Un oversaw the launch of strategic cruise missiles from the Choe Hyon destroyer over the Yellow Sea, in direct response to the joint Freedom Shield military exercises between South Korea and the United States, which are being conducted from March 9 to 19 with nearly 18,000 personnel.
Lee Sung-Yoon, a researcher at the Sejong Institute, finds the regime's intention evident: Kim Jong Un "has made it clear, beyond reasonable doubt, that he is preparing his teenage daughter to be his successor." If the succession is confirmed, Kim Ju Ae would be the first woman to lead the Kim dynasty since its foundation in 1948, when Kim Il Sung came to power.
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