Moscow ( CNN ) Never mind . North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has backed out of next month 's visit to Moscow for World War II anniversary celebrations , Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday . `` We were informed of the decision via diplomatic channels , '' Peskov said . `` The decision is connected with North Korean domestic affairs . '' The visit was highly anticipated because it would have marked Kim 's first official foreign trip since inheriting the leadership of North Korea in late 2011 . He was to have met with Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of the May visit to coincide with Victory Day , marking the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Union 's victory over Nazi Germany in World War II . Kim also could have had the chance to rub elbows with the heads of about 30 other governments , including the leaders of China , Cuba , India , Germany , Vietnam and Venezuela . This number represents about half the world leaders that Russia has said it invited to the celebrations . Kim 's trip had been anticipated since late December , when Russian state media reported that Moscow had extended an invitation . There was no further explanation , from Moscow or Pyongyang , as to why he would n't head west . Still , North Korea has a number of issues it 's been wrestling with for years . They include widespread poverty , its longstanding spat with neighboring South Korea and the United States , as well as its international isolation largely due to its controversial nuclear program . And news about Kim 's non-visit comes a day after South Korean intelligence agents told lawmakers that Kim is ruling with an iron fist , having ordered the execution of about 15 senior officials so far this year . CNN can not independently confirm the executions detailed by Shin Kyung-min , a lawmaker with the New Politics Alliance for Democracy who attended the closed briefing . And the nature of the intelligence supporting the allegations was not immediately clear . That said , North Korea is one of the most closed societies in the world . And there 's little doubt that Kim is very much in charge . According to Shin , intelligence officials say the North Korean leader is ruling in an impromptu manner and does not countenance excuses or any views that vary with his own . CNN 's Madison Park and Alla Eshchenko contributed to this report . CNN 's Matthew Chance reported from Moscow , and CNN 's Ed Payne and Greg Botelho wrote this story from Atlanta .
Next month 's visit to Moscow by the North Korean leader is off . This Victory Day marks the 70 years since the Soviet victory over Germany in World War II .