N Korean leader Kim Jong Un will attend military parade in Beijing next week

Beijing: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will make a rare trip abroad next week to attend a military parade in the Chinese capital, North Korean and Chinese state media said Thursday.

China will hold the parade in Beijing on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

26 foreign leaders including Putin to attend

Twenty-six foreign leaders will attend, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, the official Xinhua News Agency said. It cited Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei as saying Kim will attend what it called “China’s V-Day commemorations” on September 3.

North Korea’s state news agency confirmed Kim will visit China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the war’s end. It gave no further details, including when Kim will depart from North Korea and how long he will stay in China.

No leaders from the United States or major Western European countries are expected, in part because of their differences with Putin over the war in Ukraine.

If Kim’s trip is realised, it would be his first trip to China since 2019.

China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner

China has long been North Korea’s biggest trading partner and main aid provider, but there have been questions about their relations in recent years. North Korea has been focused on expanding cooperation with Russia by supplying troops and ammunition to support Russia’s war against Ukraine. But many observers say North Korea is expected to take steps to improve ties with China.

In 2023, about 97 per cent of North Korea’s external trade was with China, while 1.2 per cent was with Russia.

The announcement on Kim’s trip comes after North Korea has said it has no intentions of returning to diplomacy with the US and North Korea, though President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung have repeatedly expressed their hopes to resume talks with North Korea.

During a meeting with Lee in Washington this week, Trump spoke of his past summits with Kim, including one at the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Responding to a question over whether he would return to the Demilitarized Zone, Trump told reporters, “I loved it. Remember when I walked across the line and everyone went crazy.”