{"id":610,"date":"2026-06-08T05:38:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T05:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=610"},"modified":"2026-06-08T05:38:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T05:38:00","slug":"chinese-leader-xi-arrives-in-north-korea-for-closely-watched-talks-with-kim","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=610","title":{"rendered":"Chinese leader Xi arrives in North Korea for closely watched talks with Kim"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) \u2014 Chinese President Xi Jinping<\/span> arrived in Pyongyang on Monday for a rare state visit<\/span> that experts say is likely meant to reassert China\u2019s unique influence over North Korea in return for providing economic and political benefits.<\/p>\n

Read more A 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the southern Philippines causes 4 deaths, damage and a tsunami<\/a><\/p>\n

During a two-day trip, his first visit to North Korea in seven years, Xi is to meet leader Kim Jong Un<\/span>. It will be their first summit since September, when they met in Beijing<\/span> after viewing a military parade<\/span> alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and other foreign leaders.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s official Xinhua News Agency reported that Xi had arrived in Pyongyang, after earlier reporting that Xi\u2019s entourage includes his wife Peng Liyuan, Foreign Minister Wang Yi and top Communist Party official Cai Qi.<\/p>\n

No specific agenda has been mentioned. Foreign experts predict the meeting will have big ramifications on bilateral ties and beyond, as they both seek to fully restore their traditional alliance in the face of separate confrontations with the U.S.<\/p>\n

\u201cA Chinese leader doesn\u2019t just visit North Korea because a visit is due. Xi\u2019s trip will have real implications for China-DPRK relations,\u201d said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, using the abbreviation for North Korea\u2019s full name.<\/p>\n

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Sway over North Korea could help Xi\u2019s dealings with US<\/h2>\n

Xi\u2019s trip comes after his back-to-back summits with U.S. President Donald Trump<\/span> and Putin<\/span> in Beijing last month. Xi is expected to meet Trump again on a planned U.S. visit in September.<\/p>\n

Xi will try to demonstrate China\u2019s \u201csway over the Korean Peninsula\u201d and \u201ca leadership role in entire Northeast Asia in the ages of strategic competitions with the U.S.,\u201d said Kwak Gil Sup, the head of One Korea Center, a website specializing in North Korea affairs.<\/p>\n

China has long been North Korea\u2019s economic lifeline and main diplomatic backer. Experts say China has avoided fully enforcing U.N. sanctions on North Korea and sent clandestine aid to help its impoverished neighbor stay afloat. This year marks 65 years since the two countries signed a mutual defense treaty.<\/p>\n

But there have been questions about their ties<\/span> in recent years, with North Korea prioritizing cooperation with Russia<\/span> by supplying troops and weapons to support its war against Ukraine. In return, North Korea has received economic and military assistance from Russia. <\/p>\n

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Restoring an exclusive influence over North Korea would give Xi a leverage in dealings with Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire to restart diplomacy<\/span> with Kim, experts say.<\/p>\n

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\u201cImplementing U.N. Security Council resolutions and enforcing sanctions do not appear to be priorities for China,\u201d Easley said.<\/p>\n

In an article published on the North\u2019s main Rodong Sinmun newspaper Monday, Xi said China and North Korea must boost strategic cooperation and work together to oppose \u201chegemonism and coercive politics\u201d and pursue an orderly multipolar world. <\/p>\n

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