North Korea holds national conference of war veterans without leader Kim's attendance

Korean War veterans of North Korea arrive in Pyongyang by bus to attend a national conference to celebrate the 69th anniversary of the Korean War armistice, July 25. The North calls the 1950-53 war the Fatherland Liberation War and designates the armistice signing date as Victory Day. Yonhap

North Korea held a national conference of war veterans to celebrate the 69th anniversary of the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, state media said Wednesday.

The 8th National Conference of War Veterans took place in Pyongyang the previous day without leader Kim Jong-un in attendance, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The North celebrates the anniversary of the Korean War armistice that was signed on July 27, 1953. The North calls the conflict the Great Fatherland Liberation War and designated the armistice signing date as "Victory Day."

The KCNA said members of the presidium of the political bureau, including Jo Yong-won, and other senior party officials attended the conference but made no mention of leader Kim. Kim has stayed out of public view for over two weeks.

It marked the third consecutive year for the North to hold the conference on the national holiday. (Yonhap)