Kim Yo-jong's promotion to the party politburo last year, and her selection as envoy to the Winter Olympic Games in South Korea, are evidence of her increasing importance and her secure position at the highest level of the leadership in Pyongyang. Little is known about "Comrade Ri Sol-ju". Was she an erstwhile singer who caught Mr Kim's attention during a performance? There is a North Korean performer with her name but it has never been officially confirmed that they are the same person. North Korean television named her in 2012 after speculation over the identity of a woman appearing at public events with him, though the pair probably married three years earlier. Speculation she was pregnant began in 2016 after her disappearance from the public eye, but has never been confirmed officially.
