"Xi Jinping Unlikely to Attend North Korean Military Parade Amid US-South Korea Relations Considerations"

It is not customary for China's top leader to attend the parade
President Xi's visit to North Korea likely after APEC summit

There are reports suggesting that it is unlikely for Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend the 80th anniversary military parade of North Korea's Workers' Party, scheduled for October 10 next month.

Shinhwa Yonhap News

The Singapore-based Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao reported on the 28th that North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Sonhui met with Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (who also serves as Foreign Minister). The newspaper stated that the purpose of Choe's visit was likely to invite high-level Chinese officials to the Workers' Party founding anniversary parade.

Li Mingjiang, a professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, told Lianhe Zaobao, "The possibility of President Xi personally visiting Pyongyang to attend the parade is low," explaining, "It is not customary for China's top leader to attend North Korean military parades, and bilateral relations with the United States and South Korea are also being considered."

Professor Li further noted, "China has already treated North Korean leader Kim Jong Un with diplomatic courtesy by inviting him to Beijing for the 80th anniversary Victory Day parade held on the 3rd of last month. Therefore, there is no need for China to reciprocate with a visit by its top leader as diplomatic protocol." However, he added, "It is possible that China may send a higher-ranking official than in the past."

Previously, during the 70th anniversary parade of the Workers' Party in Pyongyang in 2015, Liu Yunshan, the fifth-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee and Secretary of the Secretariat, attended as China's representative. For the 65th anniversary event, Zhou Yongkang, the ninth-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee and Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, visited North Korea.

Ding Shufan, honorary professor at the Institute of East Asian Studies at National Chengchi University in Taiwan, predicted that if President Xi were to visit North Korea, it would be after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Gyeongju, South Korea, at the end of October, rather than for the Workers' Party founding anniversary parade.

Honorary Professor Ding said, "This would help avoid a scene at the North Korean parade where the Chinese and Russian leaders are standing on either side of Chairman Kim Jong Un, and it would also facilitate new information exchanges or coordination of positions between China and North Korea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.