SEOUL, July 27 (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un paid respects at war memorials marking the 73rd anniversary of the Korean War armistice, state media KCNA reported on Monday, with his daughter joining him for the first time at the commemorations.
Kim visited cemeteries, met veterans and laid flowers at the graves of first-generation guerrilla fighters, while reiterating Pyongyang’s claim of a “great victory” in the 1950-1953 war, according to KCNA.
The Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
North Korean state media photographs and video showed Kim’s daughter, known as Ju Ae, walking beside him during the visits, positioned at the centre of ceremonial formations and greeting elderly veterans alongside her father, underscoring her increasingly prominent public profile.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry said it was the first time Ju Ae had attended the armistice anniversary commemorations and her first visit to either the Fatherland Liberation War Martyrs Cemetery or the Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) believes Ju Ae has been positioned as Kim’s successor, based on “credible intelligence”, according to briefings by lawmakers this year.
The assessment comes as Ju Ae has been periodically shown in state media accompanying her father. In March, images showed her driving a new tank, following earlier photographs of her firing a rifle at a shooting range and using a handgun.
Kim also visited the Chinese volunteer soldiers’ cemetery, paying respects at the grave of Mao Anying, son of Mao Zedong, KCNA said on Monday, in a further sign of warming ties with Beijing.
(Reporting by Joyce LeeEditing by Ed Davies)
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