Chinese leader Xi Jinping will visit North Korea next week, marking his first foreign trip this year following recent meetings with US President Donald Trump and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in Beijing, Bloomberg reports, citing UNN.
Details
On June 8-9, Xi Jinping will visit Pyongyang for the first time since 2019 at the invitation of DPRK leader Kim Jong Un, according to Xinhua. This visit comes amid Kim's intensified diplomatic activity at home and a demonstration of his expanding nuclear arsenal to the outside world.
Following high-profile summits last month with Trump and Putin, the trip will allow Xi to present China as one of the few powers capable of engaging with all parties in an increasingly fractured world, the publication notes. The meeting with Kim will remind Washington and Moscow of Beijing's influence over the North Korean regime, although this influence has its limits, the outlet writes.
Despite years of pressure from China, North Korea has accelerated its nuclear program in recent years and deepened military ties with Moscow following the invasion of Ukraine, the publication notes.
When Xi Jinping last visited North Korea in 2019, the Chinese leader told Kim that the world wanted him to make progress in nuclear talks with the US. Trump and Kim met three times during the US president's first term, but those meetings failed to convince the North Korean leader to scale back his nuclear program.
China's latest white paper on non-proliferation did not mention "denuclearization" as a goal for the Korean Peninsula, a departure from previous statements. While the White House stated that Trump and Xi reaffirmed their shared desire to "denuclearize North Korea" last month, the Chinese version contained no such details, the publication points out.
Such omissions, as indicated, have sparked speculation that Beijing is tacitly accepting North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons to maintain regional stability.
On Thursday, North Korean state media published photos from a new uranium enrichment plant. Kim was shown inspecting centrifuge complexes, which nuclear experts will analyze to estimate how much fissile material the plant can produce.
Asked about Xi's trip to North Korea on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said the "two sides will exchange views on bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest."
They will also work to "further contribute to the promotion of peace, stability, and prosperity in the region," she added at a regular press briefing in Beijing.
The South Korean government is in "close communication" with China regarding issues related to the peninsula, according to a statement from the presidential administration in Seoul. They added that they hope "exchanges between North Korea and China will take place in a way that contributes to peace and stability."
Xi's visit follows Kim Jong Un's attendance at a major military parade in Beijing last September. China and North Korea, historical allies, have recently taken steps to strengthen bilateral ties, such as restoring rail and air links between their capitals.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited North Korea in April and met with Kim Jong Un. He emphasized the socialist bond between the two countries, adding that the parties should strengthen coordination in important global and regional affairs.
DPRK opens new plant for production of nuclear weapons materials04.06.26, 07:50