A train flying North Korean flags and believed to be carrying leader Kim Jong Un was seen by AFP journalists approaching Beijing Railway Station on Tuesday, September 2nd, ahead of a massive military parade on Wednesday.
Kim will join Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and two dozen other leaders at the huge spectacle to mark 80 years since the end of World War II.
China will showcase its military prowess with troops marching in formation, flypasts, and other high-tech fighting gear at the showpiece extravaganza centred on Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, which early on Tuesday said Kim’s train had crossed into China, also reported the special armoured train’s arrival in the capital.
It is only Kim’s second reported trip abroad in six years.
China has touted the parade as a show of unity with other countries, and Kim’s attendance will be the first time he is seen alongside Xi and Putin at the same event.
Wednesday’s belligerent festivities cap a bumper week of diplomacy for President Xi, who on Sunday and Monday hosted a slew of Eurasian leaders for a summit in the northern port city of Tianjin aimed at putting China front and centre of regional relations.
During the summit, Xi slammed “bullying behaviour” from certain countries—a veiled reference to the United States—while Putin defended Russia’s Ukraine offensive, blaming the West for triggering the conflict. To date, Moscow’s military campaign has made significant use of North Korean troops and hardware.
