Beijing says 26 world leaders will attend the occasion in Tiananmen Sq., overseen by Chinese language President Xi Jinping.
Revealed On 28 Aug 2025
North Korean chief Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin might be amongst world leaders attending an upcoming army parade in China to mark 80 years because the finish of World Battle II.
Kim and Putin will take part within the “Victory Day” parade in Beijing subsequent week, China’s Ministry of Overseas Affairs introduced on Thursday.
It will likely be held in Beijing’s Tiananmen Sq. and can function a solid of hundreds and a showcase of China’s newest army know-how.
The visitor listing additionally contains Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, the ministry mentioned.
The parade coincides with the anniversary of September 3, 1945, the day that the Empire of Japan formally surrendered to Allied Forces in Tokyo.
South Korea might be represented by Woo Gained-shik, the speaker of the Nationwide Meeting, whereas Robert Fico, the prime minister of Slovakia, would be the solely Western chief in attendance.
It’s unclear if Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the parade.
Modi might be in China that very same week to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a Beijing-led safety alliance, within the Chinese language metropolis of Tianjin.
Indian and Chinese language relations declined sharply in 2020 over a border dispute within the Himalayas, however they’ve thawed just lately due to shared financial grievances with the USA and President Donald Trump’s tariff conflict.
Kim and Putin are anticipated to take centre stage on the parade alongside Chinese language President Xi Jinping.
North Korea is a treaty ally of China, and Beijing gives Pyongyang with a vital financial lifeline within the face of worldwide sanctions over its nuclear weapons programme.
Beijing has additionally come to play an analogous function to Russia since Putin’s unilateral invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
China has continued to purchase Russian power exports and provide it with “twin use” know-how, electronics and components that can be utilized for civilian but in addition army functions.
Xi and Putin signed a “no limits partnership” within the weeks main as much as the invasion of Ukraine, whereas North Korea and Russia have additionally grown nearer because the begin of the conflict, with Pyongyang sending munitions and even troopers to resupply Russian forces of their battle towards Ukraine.
Putin final visited China in 2024, whereas Kim final visited in 2019.
