With an interminable procession of troops, armoured vehicles and missiles, China’s biggest ever military parade in Beijing last week was an imposing demonstration of hard power as one totalitarian leader showed off his might to his allies.
However, seasoned observers of Asian affairs were more startled by the sight of a 12-year-old girl in a smart navy suit, her hair tied in a bow.
Poised and demure, she followed directly behind North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un as he got off his green armoured train and was greeted by Chinese officials waiting on a red carpet.
She was present, too, smiling serenely as Kim met China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
And well might she smile, for this girl is Kim Ju-ae, Kim’s daughter and his only confirmed offspring.
