Seoul, Sept 2: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Beijing by train on Tuesday to attend a military parade with his Chinese and Russian counterparts, an event that observers say could potentially demonstrate three-way unity against the United States.
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among the 26 world leaders who will join China’s President Xi Jinping at Wednesday’s massive military parade in Beijing that commemorates the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s fight against Japan’s wartime aggressions.
It’s set to be Kim’s first time attending a major multilateral event during his 14-year rule, and the first time Kim, Xi and Putin, all key challengers of the US, have gathered at the same venue. None of the three countries have confirmed a private trilateral leaders’ meeting.
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Kim was greeted at Beijing railway station by senior Chinese officials. Kim was cited as saying he was pleased to visit China and expressing thanks to Xi and his government for their cordial hospitality.
China’s state-run Xinhua news agency issued a photo of a smiling Kim, dressed in a black suit and red tie, stepping off his train at the station.
Bilateral meetings
In a closed-door briefing to lawmakers earlier Tuesday, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said that Kim will likely receive special protocol and security measures on par with those given to Putin, according to Lee Seong Kweun, a lawmaker who attended the meeting.
The spy agency said Kim may stand alongside Xi and Putin on the rostrum at Tiananmen Square during Wednesday’s parade, and anticipated that he will hold bilateral meetings with the Chinese and Russian leaders and interact with other heads of state at a reception and cultural performance as he seeks to further break out of isolation and expand his diplomatic footing, Lee said.
It is Kim’s 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 Organisation, a regional summit, as well as the Beijing parade. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told Russia’s Tass news agency on Sunday that a meeting between Putin and 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.
Kim to restore China ties
North Korea’s foreign policy priority has been Russia in recent years as it has been supplying troops and ammunition to support Moscow’s war against Ukraine in exchange for economic and military assistance.
According to South Korean assessments, North Korea has sent around 15,000 troops to Russia since last year. In its latest briefing to lawmakers, the South Korean spy agency said it believes roughly 2,000 of them have so far died in combat, Lee said.
Kim has also agreed to additionally send thousands of military construction workers and deminers to Russia’s Kursk region, and the agency assesses that the first 1,000 are already in Russia, Lee said.
North Korea’s relations with China have reportedly turned sour in recent years, but experts say Kim likely hopes to restore ties as China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and aid benefactor and he would want to brace for the end of the Russia-Ukraine war. (AP)
