Beijing announces more than 20 presidents, prime ministers and members of Royal Houses for the opening of the Games

More than 20 heads of state, government leaders and members of royal families will attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics on Friday, February 4.

The list increases to more than 30 foreign leaders with the inclusion of heads of international organizations headed by Germany’s Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

The announcement was made by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying. Chinese President Xi Jinping will host a welcoming banquet for foreign dignitaries and hold “relevant” bilateral activities, according to the spokeswoman.

The list was headed by Russian President Vladimir Putin who repeats his visit to an Olympic event in the Chinese capital after being in the front row with then President of the United States, George W. Bush, during the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games.

But this time Putin won’t be sitting next to any American president or diplomat. Last December, U.S. President Joe Biden announced a diplomatic boycott of the Games over alleged human rights violations by the Chinese government. Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Germany, among others, gradually joined the boycott, but all countries will allow their athletes to compete in Beijing.

Within a week, Beijing will become the only host city for the Summer and Winter Olympics.

Five other presidents of ex-Soviet Central Asian republics will accompany the Russian leader: Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, Sadyr Zhaparov of Kyrgyzstan, Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov of Turkmenistan and Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan.

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, and Presidents Halimah Yacob of Singapore, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, Andrzej Duda from Poland, Aleksandar Vucic of Serbia, Alberto Fernández of Argentina and Guillermo Lasso from Ecuador will also attend.

Prime ministers include Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene from Mongolia, Imran Khan of Pakistan and James Marape from Papua New Guinea.

Among the representatives of Royal Houses, the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (IOC Member), the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the Princess of Thailand, Maha Chakri Sirindhorn.

Also included are Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and Prince Albert II of Monaco, both members of the IOC.

Also present will be Zoran Tegeltija, head of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan, Ali Ahmadov, and the Speaker of the National Assembly of South Korea, Park Byeong-seug.

Among the leaders of world organizations are Bach, the secretary general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, the president of the U.N. General Assembly Abdulla Shahid and the director general of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu.

The official list, released by the Chinese news agency Xinhua, mentions Singaporean Daren Tang, director general of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and Brazilian Marcos Troyjo, president of the New Development Bank, among the foreign guests.