(LEAD) N. Korea domestically announces leader's plan to attend China's Sept. military parade

▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (L) stands next to Chinese President Xi Jinping during Xi's visit to Pyongyang, in this 2019 file photo. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) NK leader-China trip

(LEAD) N. Korea domestically announces leader's plan to attend China's Sept. military parade

(ATTN: UPDATES with more info throughout)

SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Yonhap) -- North Korea on Friday domestically announced leader Kim Jong-un's plan to attend China's large-scale military parade next week to its people, a day after the information was released internationally.

The Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's most widely read newspaper, carried the news in its Friday edition, saying Kim will soon travel to China to attend the military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, at the invitation of President Xi Jinping.

The same report was also broadcast by the Korean Central Broadcasting Station's radio service Friday morning.

The previous day, North Korea first broke the news via the Korean Central News Agency, the regime's mouthpiece wire service, which is inaccessible to general North Koreans.

Next Wednesday, China will hold a high-profile military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in 1945, which it observes as victory against Japan.

Attending alongside Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kim will make his debut on the stage of multilateral diplomacy, as state leaders of 26 foreign countries are scheduled to join the event.

Kim has no record of attending a multilateral gathering since taking power in 2011.

Kim's rare overseas trip comes as North Korea and China show signs of restoring bilateral ties, fractured by Pyongyang's close alignment with Russia, following the deployment of North Korean troops to support Moscow's war with Ukraine.

The upcoming trip marks Kim's fifth visit to China, following three visits in 2018 and the most recent in 2019.

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