North Korea’s ruling party turns 80 with foreign leaders in attendance

BEIJING (AP) — North Korea is celebrating Friday the 80th anniversary of the ruling party and different foreign dignitaries and leaders will be part of the commemoration.

The Workers’ Party celebrations will serve to show once again how North Korea is trying to shore up its relations with some key global players and allies, such as China and Russia, who are sending high-level representatives.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has had in China his most important ally, and in recent years he has also built ties with Russia, a country North Korea has helped by sending troops to participate in its war against Ukraine.

In September, Kim Jong Un stood next to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of a visit to Beijing to attend a massive military parade marking the end of the World War II.

The plans of what will happen during the commemoration have not been revealed, but some foreign leaders have started arriving.

Here’s a view of some of the leaders and high-level representatives that are expected to attend:

Premier Li Qiang arrived Thursday in Pyongyang, North Korea's capital, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Li's presence is the highest-level visit by a Chinese leader since 2019. He is one of seven members of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party’s Politburo, the apex of power in China.

As premier, he is generally considered the No. 2 leader in China after President Xi Jinping. Li has been representing China on more foreign trips and high-level events recently, including the United Nations General Assembly in September.

Russia is sending Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president who serves as deputy head of the Security Council chaired by Putin, to this week’s anniversary celebrations, North Korea’s official KCNA news agency said Monday.

North Korea has been expanding cooperation with Russia, another neighbor to China. It has supplied combat troops and ammunitions to support Russia's war against Ukraine.

Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, Vietnam's top leader, also arrived Thursday in North Korea for the celebrations, Vietnamese state media reported.

As general secretary of the Communist Party in Vietnam, he holds the same leadership position held by Kim Jong Un in the North Korean Workers’ Party.

To Lam who was welcomed by Kim Jong Un in a ceremony in Pyongyang, reported the Vietnamese state media. The visit happens as both countries also celebrate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

The president of Laos, Thongloun Sisoulith, will also attend, KCNA said last week. He is general secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. front right, shakes hands with Vietnamese Defense Minister Phan Van Giang in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. (Hoang Thong Nhat/VNA via AP)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, second left, and Vietnamese General Secretary of Communist Party To Lam, third left, review honor guards during a welcome ceremony for Lam's state visit in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. (Hoang Thong Nhat/VNA via AP)

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and the head of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev attends a wreath laying ceremony at the statues of former North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. (Ekaterina Shtukina, Sputnik Pool Photo via AP)

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and the head of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev, center, leaves after laying flowers to the statues of former North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. (Ekaterina Shtukina, Sputnik Pool Photo via AP)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right, and Vietnamese General Secretary of Communist Party To Lam shake hands in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. (Hoang Thong Nhat/VNA via AP)

Vietnamese General Secretary of Communist Party To Lam, second right, is greeted by children upon his arrival in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, for a state visit and to attend the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Worker's Party of Korea. (Hoang Thong Nhat/VNA via AP)

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and the head of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev, right, is greeted by North Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Im Cheon Il upon his arrival in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Worker's Party of Korea. (Ekaterina Shtukina, Sputnik, Pool Photo via AP)

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and the head of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev, left, is greeted by North Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Im Cheon Il upon his arrival in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Worker's Party of Korea. (Ekaterina Shtukina, Sputnik, Pool Photo via AP)

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Tanzania is reeling from violence following the Oct. 29 election that international observers say fell short of a free and fair vote. As authorities face questions over the death toll after security forces tried to quell riots and opposition protests in the East African country, the leading opposition party Chadema asserts that hundreds were killed in the violence.

The African Union said Wednesday in a statement that its observers had concluded the election “did not comply with AU principles, normative frameworks, and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections.”

AU observers reported ballot stuffing at several polling stations and cases where voters were issued multiple ballots. The environment surrounding the election was “not conducive to peaceful conduct and acceptance of electoral outcomes," the statement said.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who took office in 2021 after the death of her predecessor, took more than 97% of the vote, according to an official tally. Her main rivals, Tundu Lissu of Chadema and Luhaga Mpina of ACT-Wazalendo, were barred from running in what rights groups have called a climate of repression. There were enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial killings, according to Amnesty International. Tanzania's government has denied it.

While Hassan is the main subject of anger in Tanzania, critics have asserted that others share the blame, claiming that Africa's only female head of state is largely a figurehead. Here is a look at five key political figures:

Hassan is commander-in-chief of the armed forces and chairperson of the ruling Chama cha Mapinduzi party, which has ruled Tanzania since independence from Britain in 1961. Her share of this vote was the highest ever in a presidential race since the start of multi-party politics in 1992. Hassan has “overseen an unprecedented crackdown on political opponents," with Chadema banned from participating in elections and its leader, Lissu, charged with treason after he urged electoral reforms, the International Crisis Group has said in its assessment.

Hassan's critics assert that she has surrounded herself with loyalists from Zanzibar, the semi-autonomous archipelago where she was born. That has led to fears of factionalism within the ruling party. The Zanzibar clique “lacks extensive experience of government,” William Farmer, an analyst with the London-based Africa Practice consulting firm, told The Associated Press.

Kikwete is Tanzania's only surviving former president. He has remained influential in politics since he left the presidency in 2015 and was instrumental in the orderly transition of power when Hassan’s predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli, died in office in 2021.

Many Tanzanians see Kikwete as a key behind-the-scenes supporter of Hassan, and they have criticized him over the election violence. He has not addressed such allegations publicly. Kikwete is also seen as representing foreign business interests keen to maintain political stability, said Tito Magoti, a human rights lawyer in Dar es Salaam.

Nchimbi is a former interior minister and outgoing secretary-general of the ruling Chama cha Mapinduzi, or CCM, party. He and Hassan were inaugurated on Monday in the administrative capital, Dodoma. Nchimbi is seen as a classic party ideologue who is well-placed for a possible presidential run when Hassan’s term ends in five years. Brenda Rupia, director of communications for the Chadema opposition group, described Nchimbi as the CCM strategist, in charge of overall policy while he ran the secretariat.

One of Hassan’s key advisors is her son, Abdul Halim Hafidh Ameir. While he has held no formal role in Hassan’s government, some critics claim he was a key organizer of the latest crackdown, according to Farmer. Humphrey Polepole, Tanzania’s former ambassador to Cuba who was taken from his home last month and remains missing, had his diplomatic status revoked after he criticized Hassan’s leadership style and claimed that Ameir was operating as an informal intelligence chief. Ameir has not addressed such allegations publicly.

Makonda, a former regional commissioner of Dar es Salaam, is a high-ranking member of the ruling party and Hassan ally. He is among those “most likely to get plum roles” in the next administration, according to Farmer. The U.S. in 2020 sanctioned Makonda, saying he was “implicated in oppression of the political opposition, crackdowns on freedom of expression and association, and the targeting of marginalized individuals."

Tanzania's Vice President Emmanuel Nchimbi delivers his speech during a campaign rally in Dodoma, Tanzania, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. (AP Photo)

Former Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner Paul Makonda speaks to the media in Arusha, Tanzania, Sunday, Aug. 17, 2025. (AP Photo)

FILE - Tanzania President Jakaya Kikwete along with other East African Presidents, attends a breakfast discussion at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Molly Riley, File)

FILE - Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan appears in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus on April 15, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)