Won Gon Park, Chair of the EAI North Korea Studies Center, notes that while there is evidence to suggest an increased likelihood of Kim Ju Ae being a strong candidate for succession, it remains challenging to confirm her as the successor given that North Korea has yet to officially announce her name. Furthermore, Park argues that if the North Korean regime intends to position Kim Ju Ae as the next leader, it would present a significant challenge for Kim Jong Un to seek a new form of legitimacy, as this would require a departure from the Confucian ideology and the guerrilla narrative that have underpinned the regime since its inception.