Former minister appointed as key point man in China’s diplomacy with North Korea

China’s government has appointed a former deputy foreign minister to head the Communist Party department that handles much of its diplomacy with North Korea.

Song Tao, 60, has replaced 66-year-old Wang Jiarui, who had held the position for 12 years, to become the minister of the party’s International Department, according to its website.

The department handles much of the ruling Communist Party’s relations with foreign countries’ political parties and has held a particularly important role in liaison work with Pyongyang.

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China and North Korea are both socialist countries. The  Communist Party of China and the Korean Workers’ Party traditionally have close relations,” said Cui Zhiying,  a Korean affairs expert at Shanghai’s Tongji University.  

The department also plays an important role in relations with other communist-ruled countries such as Vietnam and Cuba.

Wang has been a key figure in party-to-party diplomacy with North Korea over the past decade.

He hosted five visits by North Korea’s late paramount leader  Kim Jong-il, father of present supreme leader  Kim Jong-un, as well as visits by many of the country’s envoys. He was also a frequent visitor to Pyongyang.