North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is set to travel to China next week for his first visit in six years, marking a significant return to the international stage. Kim’s attendance at the Chinese military parade will bring him together with several world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, in what will be his first participation in a large-scale multilateral event since taking power in late 2011.
The trip underscores the growing alignment between Beijing, Moscow, and Pyongyang at a time when the United States has been strengthening security cooperation with South Korea and Japan. According to North Korea’s state media, the visit comes at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. China’s foreign ministry confirmed that Kim will be among 26 foreign leaders attending the event in Beijing on Wednesday to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s resistance against Japanese wartime aggression.
“We warmly welcome General Secretary Kim Jong Un to China to attend the commemorative events,” said Hong Lei, China’s assistant minister of foreign affairs, during a press conference. “Upholding, consolidating and developing the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK is a firm position of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government.” DPRK stands for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, North Korea’s official name.
Kim’s First Major Multinational Event
Since succeeding his father in December 2011, Kim has met with global leaders including Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, former U.S. President Donald Trump, and former South Korean President Moon Jae-in. However, all of those meetings were bilateral, and Kim has never before joined such a broad gathering of world leaders.
“Given that other leaders attending are mostly from pro-Russia and pro-Chinese countries, Kim likely intends to form solidarity with those Global South countries while showing he’s leader of a normal country,” explained Moon Seong Mook, an analyst with the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy in Seoul.
Experts believe Kim’s confidence has grown through expanding cooperation with Russia, which has provided support to help North Korea withstand sanctions and break its diplomatic isolation. Reports indicate that North Korea has been supplying troops and ammunition to Russia for the war in Ukraine in exchange for economic and military aid. Leaders from countries including Iran, Belarus, Serbia, Cuba, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Malaysia are also expected to attend the parade. Western leaders, particularly from the United States, are not attending due to differences with Putin over the Ukraine conflict. The event will highlight China’s newest military capabilities and include a speech by Xi.
