North Korea sends high-ranking delegation to UN for first time in seven years

North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong waves as he heads to Beijing, China on Sept. 25, 2025, in this photo released by the state-run [North] Korea Central News Agency the following day.

SEOUL, September 26 (AJP) - North Korea's high-ranking official has left Pyongyang to attend the ongoing session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week, the state-run [North] Korean Central News Agency reported on Friday.

Along with his entourage, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong arrived in Beijing on an Air Koryo flight the previous day, en route to New York, becoming North Korea’s first high-level official to attend the annual UN gathering in seven years.

Kim is scheduled to speak on the final day of the assembly’s 80th session next Monday. Previously, Foreign Ministers Ri Su-yong and Ri Yong-ho represented North Korea at the assembly from 2014 to 2018.

North Korea's UN Ambassador Kim Song has delivered speeches so far without the participation of any high-level officials, after the country's leader Kim Jong-un's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Hanoi was terminated with a mere photo-op in 2019.

Meanwhile, North Korean Foreign Minister Cho Son-hui is visiting Beijing this weekend, just a few weeks after the country's leader traveled there to attend a massive military parade early this month.

During her four-day trip, she will sit down for talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Saturday, according to a spokesperson from China's Foreign Ministry.

Her trip comes as the reclusive country prepares its own large-scale military parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party on Oct. 10. She is expected to discuss invitations to the event.