Twenty-six foreign leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, will attend China's V-Day commemorations on September 3, China announced on Thursday.

The presence of foreign leaders at the parade in what Beijing describes as the 'war of resistance against Japanese aggression in World War II' has become a diplomatic spat between Japan and China after Tokyo urged the world leaders to refrain from attending, saying it has 'anti-Japanese overtones'.

China has lodged a diplomatic protest with Japan for its request to the world leaders not to attend the event.