North Korean leader Kim and his daughter try out new pistols at a shooting range

Seoul, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his teenage daughter fire pistols during an inspection of a light munitions factory, state media photos showed Thursday, as they push to modernize conventional forces after years of focusing on nuclear weapons.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim visited a factory that produces pistols and other light weapons a day earlier and inspected a new pistol that had recently entered production.

After testing the weapon at a shooting range, Kim rated it “excellent,” the agency said. The agency did not mention the presence of Kim’s daughter in its text report but its photos showed her firing a pistol with senior military officers.

KCNA said Kim said the factory was critical to supplying pistols and other light weapons to the military and security forces, and demanded expanded capacity and more modern production lines.

Since the public appearance of a long-range missile test in November 2022, Kim’s daughter – Kim Ju A and believed to be about 13 – has accompanied her father to a growing number of events, including military demonstrations, factory openings and a September trip to Beijing, where Kim Jong Un held his first summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in six years.

Her increasingly prominent public appearances have prompted South Korean intelligence officials and experts to assess that Kim Jong Un is likely to groom her as a future leader to extend the family dynasty into a fourth generation.

State media last month showed the girl testing a sniper rifle as Kim presented the weapons to senior officials after a ruling party congress that laid out his key political and military goals for the next five years.

The visit to the pistol factory followed a Tuesday inspection in which Kim and his daughter watched a test launch of nuclear-capable cruise missiles from a naval destroyer, with Kim calling on his navy to speed up its nuclear arsenal.

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