Kim Jong-un, Xi Jinping met in China on May 7-8

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

North Korea

Mon, December 4, 2023 | 09:49

Kim Jong-un, Xi Jinping met in China on May 7-8

Posted : 2018-05-08 20:17

Updated : 2018-05-09 08:33

/ Captured from CCTV

By Kim Bo-eun

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their second meeting in China's northern port city of Dalian, North Korea's state news agency and Chinese media reported Tuesday.

The meeting was confirmed only after Kim returned to Pyongyang, brewing media speculations since Monday. The meeting came about 40 days since the last one that took place in Beijing in late March ― a rare move considering Kim had not previously met any foreign heads of state since assuming power in late 2011.

The rare meeting indicates Kim is seeking China's backing ahead of his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in late May or early June.

"The two leaders' meaningful reunion took place at China's city of Dalian amid the situation where a notable new era in the history of friendship between North Korea and China is unfolding," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The KCNA stated Kim left for Dalian in his private plane from Pyongyang on Monday. Top aides including his sister Kim Yo-jong accompanied him. During Kim's two-day visit, the two leaders met multiple times including for lunch and dinner.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting in the northeastern Chinese city of Dalian in this photo taken Monday or Tuesday. It is Kim's second visit to China since March. / Xinhwa-Yonhap

According to Xinhua News Agency, Kim said the meeting was arranged to inform Xi of the latest developments surrounding the Korean Peninsula and expressed his wishes to bolster strategic contact, cooperation and friendship with China.

Kim said he had a "firm and clear" commitment to denuclearizing the peninsula, adding North Korea would not need nuclear weapons if "relevant countries" end their hostility and security threats toward his country, according to the Chinese media.

Xi was quoted as stating he was "very satisfied" with positive developments in Sino-North Korean relations and on the Korean Peninsula since his last meeting with Kim.

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The meeting took place as Xi visited Dalian to attend a ceremony to mark the trial sailing of the first China-made aircraft carrier.

Regarding the meeting, Cheong Wa Dae said China had informed it of Kim's visit.

In March, Kim made a secret trip to Beijing for a meeting with Xi ahead of the inter-Korean summit. His visit was confirmed on the last day of his four-day trip. At the time, he traveled on a customized train that had also been used by his father Kim Jong-il.

The March visit was Kim's first overseas diplomatic mission, which was seen as a means to restore relations with its longtime ally China, "to strengthen its position before summits with South Korea and the U.S., and to assure China it would not be excluded in the denuclearization process," said Chung Eun-sook, senior research fellow at the Sejong Institute.

It appears Kim's visit this time could have taken place for the same reason.

"At a time at which talks on North Korea's denuclearization are underway, the U.S. brought up the regime's weapons of mass destruction, as well as human rights issues, and this prompted a hostile response from Pyongyang," Chung said.

"It appears North Korea wants to show China has its back, and also that China has a weighty role in the process, to relieve China's concerns over being sidelined."

Yang Moo-jin, professor at the University of North Korean Studies, said the visit could have been a simple invitation by China to Kim to attend a state event.

"It would not be surprising for China to invite Kim to a state event, as the two countries restored relations during the Kim-Xi summit in March," he said.

"At the same time, it could be seen as a means to pressure the U.S. by strengthening ties with China."

Yang also said, "The meeting could also have been arranged with long-term considerations, such as economic cooperation between the two nations under the condition that a successful Pyongyang-Washington summit takes place."

The date and venue of Kim's meeting with Trump appears to have been set but is yet to be announced. It is likely to take place late this month or in June, with Singapore being cited as a possible venue.

bkim@ktimes.com