She wears her hair long and wears high heels... Could the daughter of the North Korean leader take over?

The daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who is still a teenager, has attracted widespread international media attention, with her frequent public appearances alongside him. This raised speculation that he was preparing her to succeed him in power one day.

Despite controversy over its status, most experts expect that Kim will eventually transfer power to one of his sons, continuing his family's rule into a fourth generation.

Here's a look at the views of North Korean defectors and others about the girl, believed to be about 13 years old and said to be named Kim Ju-ae, and about the family's inherited rule.

Tae Yong Ho, a former minister at the North Korean embassy in London, who defected to South Korea in 2016 and later served as a member of its parliament, said he was deeply saddened by what he saw as Kim's moves to prolong his family's rule.

“It is a miserable reality that absolute power, which is not subject to any control under an absolute monarchy, is transferred to a fourth generation in the twenty-first century,” Tai told the Associated Press. He added: "North Korea will likely fall further behind the outside world if power passes to the fourth generation."

As for Kim Yumi, who fled North Korea in May 2023, she said that many North Koreans feel upset to see Kim’s daughter grow her hair longer than her shoulders, walk in high-heeled shoes, and wear clothes that resemble adult women’s clothing. Ordinary teenage girls in North Korea are not allowed such appearances. But she explained that they had no choice but to conceal their dissatisfaction for fear of harsh punishment. “People may now think that Jo Ae will become their queen,” she said.

On the other hand, Lee Si-young, who arrived in South Korea in 2013 and runs Radio Free North Korea in Seoul, said that the North Koreans would not object to the girl’s hairstyle or clothing; Because their brainwashing has reached a great degree. She added: “They will not know if her clothes are from luxury brands, but they believe that she can wear them because she is the daughter” of their supreme leader.

Choi Song Guk, who fled North Korea in 2015, said that Kim's daughter kissing her father on the cheek was "very unusual" in displays of affection between father and daughter in North Korea.

Choi, who lives under a personality cult centered around the Kim family, added that some North Koreans might feel proud when watching such a scene; They revere Kim as “the father of all people,” not “a tyrant who killed even his own uncle” in a series of brutal executions of potential rivals.

As for Lee Yong-hyun, a defector and lawyer who runs a website aimed at providing information from abroad to North Koreans, he said that North Korean society, in which a hierarchical structure centered around men is entrenched, will not easily accept a woman assuming leadership of the country.

Lee pointed out that South Korea itself has only had one female president, Park Geun-hye, who ruled between 2013 and 2017. “Even South Korea is a very patriarchal society, in which women find it difficult to hold leadership positions,” he said. “I cannot buy the idea of ​​a woman becoming the leader of North Korea, which is practically a dynasty.”

For his part, Oh Kyung-seop, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, cautioned against asserting that the girl is Kim's heir. But he said that if she were officially declared her father's heir, she might quickly be able to consolidate her power; Elements of the ruling elite with whom they share interests will rally around it and work to exclude potential competitors. “It doesn’t really matter whether the caliph is a man or a woman,” Oh said.

In turn, Ahn Kyung-soo, a researcher who has interviewed hundreds of defectors, said that Kim will need to achieve economic improvement and raise living standards in order for his people to accept the succession plan more positively.

Ahn explained that younger North Koreans have changed their way of thinking, despite living under oppressive rule, as a result of the spread of South Korean TV series and other cultural content. This constitutes a burden on Kim. He said: “The North Korean people will not revolt against Kim, but what is important is whether he will be able to make his people accept his plan happily or reluctantly.”

Jo Seung-rae, who runs an online news website, said that his sources inside North Korea told him that they had not yet decided whether the girl was Kim's heir. But he personally believes it is, and that Kim's concerns about his health may have prompted him to speed up her grooming to succeed him.

In late September, South Korea's main intelligence agency told lawmakers that Kim had not shown other significant signs of ill health, but that he remained morbidly obese and faced a high risk of cardiovascular disease.

His father and grandfather, who ruled North Korea before he inherited power in 2011, died of heart problems.

China denied today (Monday) that there was an attempt to trap Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in an espionage scheme, and described the espionage accusations as allegations that are not based on evidence and fall within a campaign to distort Beijing's image.

The American New York Times reported that Huang admitted to Nvidia's board of directors that he had an intimate relationship with a business executive who US intelligence services had concluded was collecting information for Beijing.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Gu Jiaqun, said today, “The so-called accusations of Chinese espionage are not based on evidence, and are nothing but a campaign to distort China’s image.”

In a related context, Nvidia shares fell by about 5 percent in pre-market trading today.

Yesterday, Nvidia announced that it would open an investigation into the case.

Huang did not reveal the identity of the person with whom he had an extramarital relationship.

In a letter he addressed to Nvidia employees, obtained by the Associated Press, Huang admitted to cheating on his wife, offering his apologies to his family and colleagues, and affirming that he bears “full responsibility” for his actions.

“Leading NVIDIA is the greatest honor of my life,” Huang wrote in the letter. It is my responsibility to serve you and be worthy of your trust, but I failed to fulfill this responsibility.”

For its part, Nvidia's board of directors said in a statement that "there is no reason to believe" that national security or the company's secrets have been compromised, indicating at the same time that the investigation it is conducting will include examining all available information. The council confirmed that Huang “fully supports this review process and has pledged to cooperate with it.”

Huang, 63, will remain CEO of the company during the investigation.

For his part, company spokesman John Rizzo said: “Today’s news will not slow down (NVIDIA)... Jensen is committed to continuing to lead (NVIDIA) as CEO without any disruption.”

It is noteworthy that “NVIDIA” is a major player in the global race to develop artificial intelligence technologies, as its chips are used to operate many data centers and computer systems that are used to train and operate artificial intelligence models. Its advanced processors are also subject to strict export restrictions, with the aim of preventing China from obtaining advanced chip technology.

The New York Times reported last month that US intelligence discovered that Huang had an intimate relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen and an official at the data center company Megaspeed in Singapore, and that she was providing direct information to China.

Alice Huang was a television editor in China before becoming a senior executive at Singapore data center company Megaspeed, which later became one of Nvidia's largest clients in Southeast Asia.

Megaspeed has purchased chips from Nvidia for more than $4.8 billion over the past two years, according to the New York Times.

In his letter to Nvidia employees, Jensen Huang did not mention Alice Huang's name, nor did he address her alleged connections to the Chinese authorities. At the same time, he referred to the national security concerns raised by news reports, stressing his support for the investigation conducted by the Board of Directors and his readiness to cooperate fully in this matter.

Huang said: “I love our country and our company, and I am committed to protecting (NVIDIA) and supporting American national security.”

For his part, President Donald Trump said that he had not spoken with Huang about these recent developments, but he praised him, saying: “I hope everything is fine; He did an absolutely wonderful job.”