Chinese Premier Li Qiang to attend North Korea's Workers' Party 80th Anniversary Commemoration Event - What is the aim of the number two's visit to North Korea?

It has been revealed that Chinese Premier Li Qiang will be attending the commemorative event for the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea, which will be held in North Korea on the 10th of this month. Li is the second-ranked member of the Chinese Communist Party.
It is unusual for him to attend. South Korea's public broadcaster KBS said, "Prime Minister Lee's visit to North Korea is intended to repair the China-North Korea relationship, which has become somewhat distant due to the recent rapprochement between North Korea and Russia."
North Korea holds commemorative events to mark the founding of the party every five and ten years. In October 2020, amid strict border controls and quarantine measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic,
The 5th anniversary commemoration event was held. A large-scale mass game was held at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, and a military parade was held at an unusually early hour, during which a large intercontinental ballistic missile was unveiled.
A number of military equipment, including an ICBM, was unveiled. A celebration statement pledging loyalty to General Secretary Kim Jong Eun was also adopted.
Kim did not directly mention the United States in his speech at the time, but he emphasized that "we will continue to strengthen our war deterrent to control dangers, including the nuclear threat, from hostile forces."
The 80th anniversary of the founding of the temple will be celebrated on the 10th of this month, and preparations are underway in North Korea to hold commemorative events. Prior to this, on the 6th, the construction of the temple was announced as one of the highlights of the 80th anniversary.
The completion ceremony for the Pyongyang General Hospital and Comprehensive Cultural Facility was held. Construction of the hospital began in 2020, but completion was delayed due to a lack of materials and the impact of COVID-19. During the construction period, Kim expressed frustration over the delays.
When he inspected the hospital on the 23rd of last month, he criticized the fact that the completion of the hospital had been delayed by a year and a half due to the unfair actions of some executives who were driven by a desire for fame.
At the completion ceremony on the 6th, Kim expressed his joy at the completion, saying, "This is what I wanted to accomplish most" and "It's a historic event." However, he criticized the Ministry of Health for the fact that development in the health sector has stagnated compared to other areas.
Kim has expressed his intention to build similar facilities in various parts of the country to improve medical conditions and cultural standards. On the 10th, a military parade with tens of thousands of attendees was held to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the founding of the country.
The parade is expected to take place on the same day, and preparations are underway locally. Near the airfield in Pyongyang, training for the troops' retreat and the movement of mobile launch vehicles (TEL) have been spotted. The time of the parade on the day is unclear.
The North Korean military parade will likely take place at night, but it is unclear whether it will be held at night. South Korean news agency Yonhap News reported that North Korea will either unveil its new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the Hwasong-20, which it is developing, or a 1
"There is a possibility that a launch test will be carried out around the 10th," the report said. If the parade is held, it will be the first by North Korea's regular military since July 2023.
North Korea has invited many senior officials from friendly countries to the commemorative event. China has also invited Xi Jinping's number two,
The Prime Minister, Li Qiang, will be attending the ceremony. Relations between China and North Korea have been said to have cooled recently due to North Korea's strengthening of ties with Russia. However, last month, Chairman Kim visited China to attend the ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the War of Resistance against Japan.
At the end of last month, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. The two foreign ministers agreed to further strengthen cooperation between China and North Korea.
Discussions were reportedly held regarding the dispatch of a Chinese delegation to the 80th anniversary commemoration event. Lee will lead a Chinese government delegation to North Korea on the 9th and will stay there until the 11th. South Korea's public broadcaster KBS said
Li was described as "China's second-ranking leader after President Xi, and is of a higher rank than Liu Yunshan, then a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China, who attended the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party in 2015."
"With President Xi's visit to North Korea not materializing, China's sending its second-ranked official is seen as a message of restoration of relations between the two countries," the report said.
Other guests attending the commemorative event included former Russian Prime Minister and leader of the ruling United Russia party, Medvedev, and Vietnamese
Supreme Leader General Secretary Toh Lam is also scheduled to attend.