Military Parade in Beijing Brings Kim Jong Un Together with Putin and Xi Jinping for the First Time

North Korean state media announced that leader Kim Jong Un left Pyongyang heading to Beijing today, Tuesday, where he will participate in a massive military parade alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The event, which will take place tomorrow, Wednesday, in the Chinese capital, marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and celebrates China's struggle against Japanese aggression during the war.

This is the first time Kim has participated in a multilateral event of this scale since taking power 14 years ago.

It is also the first time that Kim, Xi, and Putin—the three prominent leaders forming an alliance opposing U.S. influence—will gather at a single event.

According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim traveled by his private train that left Pyongyang late yesterday, Monday, accompanied by several senior officials, including Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui.

Kim's train is expected to arrive in Beijing later today, Tuesday, after confirming its arrival in the Chinese border city of Dandong on Monday evening.

In this context, 26 world leaders are meeting in Beijing, including Kim and Putin, to join President Xi at this important military event, although no confirmation of a special trilateral meeting between the three leaders has been announced yet.