{"id":14241,"date":"2026-05-12T17:13:43","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T17:13:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/14241\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T17:13:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T17:13:43","slug":"kim-jong-un-visits-new-pyongyang-pet-shop-with-daughter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/14241\/","title":{"rendered":"Kim Jong-un visits new Pyongyang pet shop with daughter"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"North North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (right) visits a pet shop in the fourth-stage district of the Hwasong area \u2014 a new housing development in Pyongyang \u2014 ahead of its opening, accompanied by his daughter, Ju-ae, according to the Korean Central News Agency on Friday. (KCNA-Yonhap) <\/p>\n

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a newly built pet shop in Pyongyang alongside his wife and daughter, the North’s state media reported Friday, highlighting what it called efforts to improve living standards and promote a \u201csocialist civilization.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim inspected service facilities nearing completion in the fourth-stage district of the Hwasong area, a large-scale housing development project in the capital.<\/p>\n

KCNA did not identify the daughter by name, consistent with its usual practice, but released photos showing the girl \u2014 widely believed to be Kim Ju-ae \u2014 accompanying the leader and his wife, Ri Sol-ju. The text did not mention Ju-ae or Ri.<\/p>\n

\"(KCNA-Yonhap)\"\/ (KCNA-Yonhap) <\/p>\n

During the visit to the Hwasong Pet Shop, Kim observed various animals displayed across multiple floors and pointed to a growing trend of pet ownership in Pyongyang and other regions.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a growing number of households in the capital city and other areas have pets these days, I saw to it that a new shop was built to sell pets and various accessories and offer specialized services,\u201d Kim was quoted as saying.<\/p>\n

He also called for expanding the production of pet-related goods, including pet food, grooming tools and veterinary medicines, signaling a push to diversify consumer-oriented industries.<\/p>\n

In one image released by state media, Kim was seen showing his daughter a puppy \u2014 a rare glimpse into his personal life amid continued speculation about his daughter’s elevated public role.<\/p>\n

\"(KCNA-Yonhap)\"\/ (KCNA-Yonhap) <\/p>\n

The inspection comes as North Korea showcases lifestyle-focused amenities in tandem with large housing projects, an effort observers say is aimed at reinforcing the regime\u2019s narrative of improving people\u2019s material and cultural welfare despite ongoing economic constraints.<\/p>\n

Kim also toured other facilities, including an automobile service center, a musical instrument shop and a hair salon, praising their \u201cmodern equipment\u201d and service systems tailored to consumer needs.<\/p>\n

The Hwasong district, where some 40,000 housing units have been built in phases between 2022 and 2025, has been a centerpiece of Kim\u2019s urban development drive. A fifth-stage construction project is already underway.<\/p>\n

KCNA said the facilities are set to open around April 15, the birthday of state founder Kim Il-sung, known as the \u201cDay of the Sun.\u201d<\/p>\n

mkjung@heraldcorp.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (right) visits a pet shop in the fourth-stage district of the Hwasong area…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14242,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[129],"class_list":{"0":"post-14241","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-pyongyang","8":"tag-pyongyang"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14241"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14241\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}