bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Lee Jeong-ho

Chinese President Xi Jinping landed in North Korea on Thursday, kicking off the first visit to the reclusive state by a Chinese leader in 14 years.
Xi’s maiden trip to Pyongyang as president comes a week before he is due to meet US President Donald Trump for talks on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Japan.
Xi was accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, as well as Wang Yi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Yang Jiechi, China’s top diplomat.
He Lifeng, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, is also part of the Chinese delegation, signalling that economic cooperation could be on the agenda.
5 things to look out for when Xi Jinping visits North Korea
The Chinese president was greeted by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport. Kim was accompanied by Pak Pong-ju, a key economic adviser to Kim, and Pyongyang’s top diplomat Ri Yong-ho.
North Korean officials held a welcoming ceremony at the airport. A military band played the national anthems of both countries, and Xi and Kim reviewed the honour guards of the North Korean Army.
Nearly 10,000 North Koreans, some in traditional dress, were at the airport for Xi’s arrival, while approaching 100,000 lined the streets of the capital, according to People’s Daily, the official mouthpiece of China’s Communist Party.




People waved flowers and held banners hailing the friendship between the two countries.
Xi and Kim then travelled together to Kumsusan Palace of the Sun.
They later held talks, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua. The pair were expected to discuss North Korean denuclearisation.
North Korean state media also welcomed the Chinese president’s visit, with newspaper Rodong Sinmun saying it would further strengthen “blood ties” between the two countries.
Xi Jinping pledges support for Kim Jong-un and North Korea
“Comrade Xi Jinping is visiting our country in the face of crucial and grave tasks due to complex international relations, which clearly shows that the Chinese party and the government place high significance on the friendship between the two countries,” it said.
“The friendship between North Korea and China is unbreakable.”
The two leaders are also likely to have a banquet, and Xi could watch a mass gymnastics performance, People’s Country, at the Rungrado May Day Stadium, the world’s largest.
Xi is expected to visit the DPRK-China Friendship Tower, near the Chinese embassy, during his stay in Pyongyang.




James Downes, a lecturer in comparative politics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said the two sides were likely to confirm common ground in their political ideologies during the summit.
“The advantage that China possesses over the US in allying with Kim is the similarity in political ideology,” Downes said.
“Kim eventually must side with one of the superpowers. As most autocratic leaders are fearful of the infiltration of democratic ideas, choosing the US – which has a track record of supporting insurgents in developing countries – is a highly implausible option for Kim.
Why there’s more than ideology to Xi’s visit to North Korea
“In short, the relationship between China and North Korea is likely to remain strong in the near future.”
This year marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and North Korea.
China and North Korea could formulate their own version of Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” strategy on North Korea, in their case targeting the US, according to Harry Kazianis, senior director of Korean studies at Washington think tank the Centre for the National Interest.

“This week’s summit between Xi and Kim is surely the first step in solidifying such an approach,” he said. “The visit will be more about symbolism than actual substance, but with both nations feeling the heat from Washington – North Korea on denuclearisation and China on trade – Xi and Kim stand to benefit greatly if they align jointly against the Trump administration.
“Beijing is surely concerned that Xi’s G20 meeting with Trump next week may not go well, with Trump possibly imposing more tariffs on Beijing.
“China must be ready for such a threat and will need points of leverage to ensure Washington feels the pain. That could mean undoing Trump’s North Korea strategy of economic sanctions and international isolation by allowing the near free flow of goods between Pyongyang and Beijing.”






In Munich, the US urges ‘collective strength’ among allies to deter China

North Korea threatens dire consequences if Seoul doesn’t stop drone incursions

Why Takaichi’s Japan election victory has sparked North Korea’s ‘childish’ fury

Kim Jong-un’s daughter shaping North Korean policy as succession signals deepen

North Korea

Xi Jinping lands in North Korea for first visit by a Chinese leader in 14 years

Xi Jinping’s plane lands in Pyongyang as he begins his first visit to North Korea as Chinese president. Photo: Weibo

Xi's plane landed in North Korea. Photo: Weibo

Chinese President Xi Jinping gives North Korean leader Kim Jong-un his full support

Chinese President Xi Jinping says China will continue to “firmly support” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AP

epa06823088 A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R) walking with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their meeting in Beijing, China, 19 June 2018. Kim Jong Un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is visiting the People's Republic of China from 19 to 20 June. EPA-EFE/KCNA EDITORIAL USE ONLY

The one big change in North Korea since a Chinese president last visited

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited China four times since March last year. Photo: AP

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il (L) shakes hands with Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) as he sees off the Chinese leader on his departure from Pyongyang in this October 31, 2005 file photo. North Korea's Kim Jong-il passed through China on January 10, 2006 on the way to Russia, a source with knowledge of the stopover said, but where precisely the secretive leader was headed on January 11, 2006 remained far from clear. JAPAN OUT REUTERS/Korea News Service/Files

Xi Jinping’s state visit to North Korea aims for ‘new impetus’ in ties

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (right) attends a welcome ceremony in Beijing with Chinese President Xi Jinping in January. Xi will begin a visit to Pyongyang on Thursday. Photo: AP

North Korea’s Kim Jong-un rewrites the book on the art of the deal with shrewd handling of Donald Trump in Singapore

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appeared to hold his own at the summit in Singapore on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

epa06801533 US President Donald J. Trump (L) and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R) strolling and chatting together through the grounds of the Capella Hotel after their working lunch, during the historic summit at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa Island, Singapore, 12 June 2018. The summit marks the first meeting between an incumbent US President and a North Korean leader. EPA-EFE/KEVIN LIM / THE STRAITS TIMES / SPH EDITORIAL USE ONLY

North Korea leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump sign documents after their meetings at the Capella resort on Sentosa Island Tuesday, June 12, 2018 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (L) and US President Donald Trump leave following a signing ceremony during their historic US-North Korea summit, at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore on June 12, 2018. Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un became on June 12 the first sitting US and North Korean leaders to meet, shake hands and negotiate to end a decades-old nuclear stand-off. / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB

President Donald Trump shakes hands as he meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Sentosa Island, Tuesday, June 12, 2018, in Singapore. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

News

China

Diplomacy

President is joined by wife Peng Liyuan, foreign minister Wang Yi, top diplomat Yang Jiechi and development chief He Lifeng
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un greets Xi and the pair reportedly hold talks that are expected to cover denuclearisation


North Korean leader Kim Jong-un greets Xi and the pair reportedly hold talks that are expected to cover denuclearisation.


North Korea nuclear crisis

Xi Jinping

Kim Jong-un