ISTANBUL/ISLAMABAD
North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un is set to make his multilateral diplomatic debut by attending a major military parade in Beijing next week, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Beijing and Pyongyang on Thursday almost simultaneously announced Kim’s attendance at the military parade to commemorate China's victory day, which is scheduled on Sept. 3 at Tiananmen Square in the Chinese capital.
Beijing officially refers to the 1937-1945 period as the "War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression" and considers it a crucial part of the broader "World Anti-Fascist War."
Some 26 foreign leaders, including presidents and prime ministers of Russia, Indonesia, Pakistan, and India, will be attending the event.
Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico will be the only top Western elected official among the guests in Beijing.
Officials from international organizations, including the UN, will also take part in the event.
Kim’s first appearance on international stage
When in Beijing next week, it will be the first time that North Korea's third-generation leader will attend an international multilateral gathering since taking power in December 2011, following the death of his father, Kim Jong-il.
Kim, 41, has never appeared at the UN or taken part in other global summits during his 14-year rule over North Korea, which has faced some of the toughest sanctions due to its nuclear arsenal since 2006.
The attendance at one of the largest multilateral events allows Kim to engage with foreign leaders.
Kim’s last foreign trip was to Russia in 2023, and he has met Putin twice, including in Pyongyang last year.
He visited Vietnam and Singapore for summits with US President Donald Trump during the latter’s first term at the White House.
They again met at the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which divides the Korean Peninsula, for their third meeting, and there are efforts to revive these engagements.
It was the first time any US president entered the North Korean territory when Trump, shaking hands with Kim, stepped north of the DMZ.
On Monday, Trump said he would again sit down with Kim "at some point."
The Beijing trip by Russian and North Korean leaders also opens a possibility of a three-way summit between Vladimir Putin, Kim and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Kim met Xi for bilateral in Beijing last time in January 2019, and later that year in June Xi paid his first, and only so far, state visit to North Korea. That was the first trip by any Chinese leader to its southern neighbor in 14 years.
Seoul seeks talks
Kim's scheduled appearance at the Beijing military parade triggered expectations in Seoul, where South Korea’s top diplomat, Cho Hyun, said they will "closely" work with China to revive dialogue with Pyongyang.
"North Korea also has incentives, or reasons, to come out to the international community, and especially since US President Donald Trump has expressed his willingness to hold talks (with Kim), it appears likely that North Korea will eventually agree to dialogue with the United States," Cho told Yonhap news.
Seoul has taken several steps, including ending propaganda broadcasts against North Korea, to revive trust and talks with Pyongyang since the election of President Lee Jae Myung in June.
North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, Kim’s grandfather, took part in several multilateral meetings during the Cold War era; however, Kim’s father, Kim Jong-il, avoided traveling abroad for such multilateral events.
However, of late, Pyongyang and Moscow have grown closer ties and even signed a comprehensive strategic partnership last year in June, pledging mutual military support if either country comes under attack by a third party.
The pact saw North Korea deploying its troops to help Russia in the war against Ukraine, which resulted in many casualties for Pyongyang.
'Confident' Kim wants to display allies
By his attendance at the Beijing parade, Kim “is probably looking to show his friendship with Russia and China,” Cho Hee-kyoung, a professor at Hongik University in Seoul, told Anadolu over the phone.
Cho said the statement by Trump that he was ready to meet the North Korean leader has “added” to Kim’s confidence.
“Kim probably feels he has the upper hand and wants to consolidate it by showing Trump that he has allies in Xi Jinping and (Vladimir) Putin,” said the academic.
While North Korea supplied weapons and soldiers to Russia, Cho said China “also wants to have stronger ties with North Korea, especially since it is feeling much pressure from the US in Northeast Asia.”
She said Kim had returned “empty-handed” from his Hanoi summit with Trump in 2019.
So, Kim wants to “display to (Trump) that you can’t deal with me like you did last time,” said the Korean academic.
Beijing-based Asia analyst Einar Tangen told Anadolu that Kim's decision to attend the “Victory Day” parade "is a rare, highly choreographed move with multiple layers of intent."
"The optics are designed to normalize the image of Kim as a peer among major powers and to remind both his domestic audience and rivals abroad that he has heavyweight friends," Einar said.
