North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made his appearance at a large-scale multilateral event on Wednesday, standing shoulder to shoulder with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin at China’s Victory Day parade in Beijing. But was this just optics, or did it mark a deeper realignment of global power blocs?

NK News Lead Correspondent Shreyas Reddy joins this week’s episode to explore what Kim’s presence revealed about North Korea’s shifting position globally, compare the 2025 parade to previous landmark events and discuss the risks for Kim in playing second fiddle to Xi and Putin. He also discusses why Kim’s daughter — but not his wife — may have joined him for the trip to Beijing. 

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insights from our very own journalists.