Kim Jong-un appears with daughter in public for first time

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has unveiled for the first time his second child, daughter Ju-ae, who was born in 2013.

The Korean Central News Agency, Pyongyang’s state media, on Saturday said Kim the day before oversaw the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), with the outlet releasing images of him visiting the launch site holding hands with his daughter.

"(Kim Jong-un) appeared in person with his beloved wife and first lady (Ri Sol-ju) at the test launch site for strategic weapons to mark a milestone in boosting our republic's nuclear power," the report said. Their daughter's name and other details were not mentioned, however.

The KCNA's photos showed a girl clad in white winter attire and black pants hold Kim's hand walking next to and observing the ICBM Hwasong-17, the world's biggest road-transportable liquid-fueled missile.

The North has remained tight-lipped on details on its leader's children such as gender and age. Based on intelligence and media reports, however, intelligence authorities say that since marrying Ri in 2009, Kim has had three children, born in 2010, 2013 and 2017 respectively.

In September, the British media outlet Daily Mail quoted an expert as saying a girl on stage at the celebration of the communist regime's 74th anniversary was believed to be his second daughter Kim Ju-ae. In Seoul at the time, however, the National Intelligence Service reported to the National Assembly that the girl was most likely not Ju-ae.

The girl named Ju-ae in the photos released Saturday looked different from the girl at the Sept. 9 event.

Experts say Kim Jong-un displayed his child to the world in a show of confidence over the success of the North's ICBM test. Park Won-gon, professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, said, "Visiting the ICBM launch site with his wife and child sent the message that South Korea and the US can do nothing about North Korea being a nuclear power."

Write to Dong-Hyun Kim at 3code@hankyung.com