SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a military parade in China on Wednesday to celebrate the formal surrender of Japan in World War Two, marking a rare overseas trip for the reclusive leader.
Kim stood side by side with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the parade in Beijing, before holding a bilateral meeting with Putin.
Here are details of the North Koreans seen with Kim since he left North Korea by train to visit China this week.
KIM JU AE
Kim brought his teenage daughter with him for her first public outing overseas. North Korea has never revealed her name or age, but South Korean intelligence officials believe she is the daughter identified as Ju Ae by former American basketball player Dennis Rodman.
She was photographed standing behind Kim when he arrived in Beijing and her presence will fuel further speculation that she may be Kim’s potential successor in the family’s dynastic rule of North Korea.
KIM YO JONG
Kim Yo Jong is the powerful sister of Kim Jong Un.
She is vice director of the propaganda and agitation department, and acts as one of the main voices of commentary in overseas messaging, often lashing out at the U.S. and South Korea via state media.
In 2021 she became a member of the State Affairs Commission, North Korea’s highest political body made up of top politicians assisting Kim Jong Un, according to South Korea’s Unification Ministry which handles inter-Korean affairs.
She has accompanied Kim Jong Un on multiple foreign visits including summits with U.S. President Donald Trump during Trump’s first term, apparently acting in the role of a personal aide.
Footage showed her joining Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin in a car before the leaders’ bilateral meeting on Wednesday.
CHOE SON HUI
Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui is one of the few North Korean women to hold high office. She was appointed in 2022, having previously been the first vice minister of foreign affairs.
Choe has been one of the very few officials closely involved in North Korea’s diplomacy on weapons development for more than 20 years, dating from the early days of its nuclear programme.
Choe was seen during Kim Jong Un’s previous high-profile meetings with other world leaders, including summits with Donald Trump during the U.S. president’s first term.
State media mentioned her by name as one of the officials travelling with Kim.
KIM SONG NAM
Kim Song Nam is the director of the International Affairs Department of the Workers’ Party of Korea, which manages party-to-party ties with China’s ruling Communist Party.
In that position, he is Kim Jong Un’s lead adviser and point man on China-North Korea relations, said Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert with the U.S.-based Stimson Center.
He has been an interpreter for all three members of the ruling dynasty, including Kim Jong Un’s father and grandfather, in interactions with Chinese leaders, Madden said.
A photograph showed him sitting alongside Kim Jong Un and Choe on Kim’s train.
KIM TOK HUN
A secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, Kim Tok Hun is a former premier who led economic and internal affairs.
In January, he also became chairman of the budget committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly, said South Korea’s Unification Ministry.
Kim is a rare rags-to-riches story in North Korea, having been a factory manager in his early career before rising to the top ruling echelon, analysts have said.
Kim was photographed in Beijing when Kim Jong Un arrived.
JO YONG WON
In 2022, Jo Yong Won became the director of the organisation and guidance department of the ruling party, a powerful body that governs nearly every aspect of life in North Korea.
A 2017 U.N. resolution placed him under an international travel ban and asset freeze after a series of missile tests by North Korea.
Jo was photographed in Beijing when Kim arrived.
HYON SONG WOL
Hyon Song Wol is a Workers’ Party of Korea official believed to be a close aide of Kim.
A former singer and art troupe leader, Hyon gained international recognition when she led a North Korean art troupe to South Korea during the 2018 Winter Olympics.
She oversees Kim’s protocol and event-related affairs and accompanied Kim during his 2019 summit with Trump in Vietnam.
Hyon appeared in footage of Kim joining Putin in a car before a bilateral meeting.
JU CHANG IL
Ju Chang Il is the director of the propaganda and agitation department of the Workers’ Party of Korea, according to South Korea’s Unification Ministry.
His department engages in or is responsible for censorship and since 2024 Ju has faced U.S. sanctions.
Ju was seen in a photograph taken when Kim arrived at Beijing.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee, Josh Smith and Jack Kim; Editing by Ed Davies, Clarence Fernandez and Michael Perry)
