What’s on Chinese President Xi Jinping’s agenda for first official visit to North Korea?
- First trip to North Korea by a Chinese president in more than a decade begins on Thursday
- Restoration of economic relations likely to be on the list
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s maiden state visit to Pyongyang this week may signal an economic re-engagement with the isolated neighbour, according to Chinese state media.
Ahead of the visit, Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily suggested, via its social media account, that restoring bilateral economic relations would be on the agenda.
“Bilateral economic and trade issues will be highlighted,” Zheng Jiyong, director of the Korean Studies Centre at Fudan University in Shanghai, was quoted as saying, noting the two leaders would discuss specific ways to adapt to “the new situation and the times”.
“They will also talk about bilateral humanities exchange issues, such as education and teaching cooperation … and cooperation in the field of cultural tourism,” he added.
Zheng said North Korea had taken steps to reform its economy, and introduced China’s industrial manufacturing blueprint to produce its own goods.