North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been confirmed to have attended China’s 80th Victory Day parade alongside his daughter, Kim Ju Ae.
China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency released photographs on Tuesday showing Kim’s arrival at Beijing Station that afternoon.
In the images, a figure believed to be his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, was spotted behind Kim as he disembarked from his private train. Although only half of her face was visible, she appeared to be of similar height to Kim. Officials identified Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui standing next to the figure presumed to be Kim Ju Ae.
When asked to confirm the identity of the figure resembling Kim Ju Ae, a government official stated that they are operating under the assumption that it is her.
During a closed-door session of the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee, the National Intelligence Service noted that while they cannot entirely rule out the possibility of Kim’s daughter accompanying him, they also emphasized the difficulty in definitively confirming her participation in this trip.
Notably, Kim’s wife, Ri Sol-ju, was not captured in any of the released images.
This participation in the Victory Day celebrations marks Kim’s first visit to China in 6 years and 8 months. He is expected to hold bilateral talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, signaling his debut on the multilateral diplomatic stage.