Kim Jong Un to attend Beijing military parade with Xi and Putin

Seoul (South Korea): North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is travelling to Beijing by train on Tuesday to attend a major military parade alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korea’s state media said.

The parade, scheduled for Wednesday, commemorates the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s resistance against Japan’s wartime aggression. Leaders and delegations from 26 nations are expected to attend.

Kim’s presence will mark his first participation in a large multilateral event since assuming power 14 years ago. It will also be the first time Kim, Xi, and Putin, three leaders often at odds with Washington, share the same stage.

Kim left Pyongyang for Beijing by his special train on Monday to participate in the celebrations. South Korean media reported Kim's train was expected to arrive in Beijing on Tuesday after confirming its arrival in the Chinese border city of Dandong on Monday night.

Kim's travel marks his first visit to China since 2019 and the fifth visit in total since he inherited power upon his father's death in late 2011.

Putin arrived in China on Sunday to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional summit, as well as the Beijing parade. Kremlin Aide Yuri Ushakov told Russia's TASS news agency on Sunday that a meeting with Kim on the sidelines was “under consideration.”

North Korea observers are paying keen attention to Kim possibly meeting Xi bilaterally as well and holding even a trilateral meeting with Xi and Putin. The three leaders have met bilaterally previously but have yet to hold a trilateral meeting. (AP)