Meet North Korea's most powerful woman, Kim Yo Jong: Kim Jong Un's 30-ish sister who holds his ashtray and helps run his government
- Kim Jong Un's sister and right-hand-woman, Kim Yo Jong, accompanied him to Hanoi, Vietnam, for a second summit with President Donald Trump this week.
- Kim Yo Jong, like many members of the Kim family, is a mysterious figure whose life has piqued international curiosity.
- She has rapidly become North Korea's most powerful woman, who is frequently seen side-by-side with her brother and plays a key role in his administration.
- She's not above the more menial tasks, though. Kim Yo Jong was most recently spotted holding an ashtray for her brother during one of his smoke breaks as they traveled to Hanoi.
As North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has sought to raise his international standing, a figure seen by his side almost constantly during his meetings with world leaders is none other than his sister, Kim Yo Jong.
During last year's summit between the United States and North Korea, Kim Yo Jong was front and center during the historic show of diplomacy with President Donald Trump.
It looks like she's playing a similar role again this year for a second summit between Kim Jong Un and Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam. She was even spotted on Tuesday holding a crystal ashtray as her brother took an early morning smoke break.
It's not the first time Kim Yo Jong has made headlines — she traveled to South Korea during the 2018 Winter Olympics in February, becoming the first member of North Korea's ruling family to visit the south since the Korean War in the 1950s.
Like her brother, and much of the rest of their family, few details are known about Kim Yo Jong and the life she lived before reaching a prime leadership role in the North Korean government.
Here's what we know about her so far:
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Like many of Kim's family members, Kim Yo Jong's exact age is difficult to pin down. But she's believed to be between 29 and 31.
She's the youngest child of former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and his consort Ko Yong Hui, a former dancer.
Source: Business Insider
She was partly educated in Switzerland, at the same school Kim Jong Un attended. But she returned to North Korea in 2000 after completing the US equivalent of the sixth grade.
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/961416981013344256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Kim Yo Jong as a girl: this is the earliest photo we have of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, taken while she was at school in Switzerland. pic.twitter.com/LrDFgGBzdt
Source: North Korea Leadership Watch
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