North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has arrived in the Chinese capital Beijing along with his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, to attend China’s largest-ever military parade.
The “Victory Day” parade on Wednesday will see him rub shoulders with China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and other world leaders.
Photos showed Kim stepping off his armoured train at Beijing Railway Station accompanied by his daughter. South Korea’s spy agency has previously said she was Kim’s “most likely” successor.
Xi is hosting the parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the formal surrender of the Japanese at the end of World War Two.
Kim crossed into China on Tuesday onboard his train, which is said to include a restaurant serving fine French wines and dishes like fresh lobster. He left Pyongyang on Monday, but the train’s heavy protection means it travels slowly.
Miss Kim has appeared in public frequently alongside her father since she made her debut in November 2022. Details about her are very limited, however.
There are conflicting reports regarding her age. In 2023, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) said it believed she was around 10 years old.
The Chinese parade comes at a significant moment for Xi as seeks to assert Beijing’s economic and diplomatic might on the international stage.
As Donald Trump’s tariffs destabilised the global trade order, Xi endeavoured to cast China as a stable trading partner.
The parade in Beijing represents a chance for Xi to showcase his country’s growing ability to rival the US in any conflict.
The 70-minute event is likely to feature China’s latest weaponry, including hundreds of aircraft, tanks and anti-drone systems – the first time its military’s new force structure is being fully showcased in a parade.
Xi will stand shoulder to shoulder with Kim and Russia’s Putin, in an apparent show of solidarity with both aggressors in the Ukraine war. Kim has supplied both weapons and troops to Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
They will be among 26 other heads of state – including leaders from Iran and Cuba – as tens of thousands of military personnel march in formation through Beijing’s historic Tiananmen Square.
Leaders from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam are also invited – further proof of Beijing’s efforts to bolster ties with neighbouring South East Asia.
Kim’s attendance marks the first time a North Korean leader has been present at a Chinese military parade in decades. The last time this happened was when his grandfather, the founder of North Korea Kim Il-Sung, attended in 1959.
Just one EU leader will be attending – Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico – while Bulgaria and Hungary will send representatives.
China has not criticised Putin’s full-scale invasion and has been accused by the West of aiding Russia’s war effort through its supply of dual-use materials and purchases of Russian oil. Beijing denies this.
Following their meeting on Tuesday, Putin described Xi as a dear friend, while Chinese state media described relations as exemplary.
With Trump still without concrete commitments from Putin on a possible peace deal in Ukraine, Xi’s welcome of the Russian leader appears to demonstrates their close ties.
Kim’s attendance is an upgrade from China’s last Victory Day parade in 2015, when Pyongyang sent one of its top officials, Choe Ryong-hae.
The reclusive leader rarely travels abroad, with his recent contact with world leaders limited to Putin, who he’s met twice since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He last visited Beijing in 2019 for an event marking the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the countries. That trip also saw him travel by train.
The tradition of travelling via train was started by Kim’s grandfather Kim Il Sung – who took his own train trips to Vietnam and Eastern Europe.
Kim’s father, Kim Jong Il, travelled by train as well as he was reportedly afraid of flying.
According to one South Korean news outlet, the armoured train has around 90 carriages, including conference rooms, audience chambers and bedrooms.
