North Korea's Kim Jong Un, Russia's Vladimir Putin to participate in China's military parade

Seoul [South Korea], August 28 (ANI): North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will attend celebrations in China marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, according to its state media.
Yonhap reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping had invited Kim Jong-un, as cited by North Korean state media, according to Yonhap news agency on Thursday.
Kim "will soon visit the People's Republic of China at the invitation of Xi Jinping ... to participate in celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War," the North's Korean Central News Agency said.
China observes September 3 as the anniversary of what it describes as victory in the struggle against Japan in 1945, when Japan was defeated in World War II.
Chinese state media Xinhua stated that 26 foreign leaders will attend China's V-Day commemorations in Beijing. Tens of thousands of military personnel are slated to march in formation through the historic Tiananmen Square and the parade will be survyed by Xi.
China's Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei, addressing a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday, said that China warmly welcomes the North Korean leader, and China and DPRK are traditional friendly neighbours.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is also expected to attend the event, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Hong said on Thursday that the upcoming parade is meant "to demonstrate China's firm determination to follow the path of peaceful development, its strong will to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its powerful capability to defend world peace."
"No matter how far we develop, China will never seek hegemony, never pursue expansion, and never engage in an arms race," the Chinese minister was cited as saying by the Global Times.
He said that Putin's participation at the event highlights "high-level China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era", and demonstrates the two countries' unity and determination in jointly safeguarding the victory of World War II.
Meanwhile, Diesel-electric submarines of the Russian Navy and the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy have conducted a joint patrol in the Asia-Pacific region for the first time in history, Russia's Pacific Fleet said in a statement as stated by Russian media agency TASS.
The joint patrol of Russia's Volkhov submarine with a Chinese submarine was launched in early August, following the conclusion of the China-Russia Exercise Joint Sea 2025 in the Sea of Japan. (ANI)