N. Korean leader en route to Beijing for summit

By Kim Young-jin

Staff reporter

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il appeared set to begin making his way to Beijing, Tuesday, where he is expected to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Sources in Dalian, where Kim spent the night, told Yonhap News Agency that his reservation at the Furama hotel there was made for 7 p.m. and that his armored train was on standby at the railway station.

Earlier in the day, Kim and his entourage visited a development project area near Dalian to inspect a port under construction, and then returned to the hotel, the sources said.

This is Kim's first trip in four years to China, North Korea's last remaining major ally.

During the expected summit, analysts believe Kim will attempt to secure Chinese assistance for his country's troubled economy, reportedly hit hard by the tightened U.N. sanctions imposed for its nuclear test last year.

It has been speculated for months that Kim could agree to bring Pyongyang back to the six-party talks on its denuclearization in return for such aid.

But the outlook for the resumption of the negotiations has been muddied by suspicions that the North was behind the March 26 sinking of the South Korean Navy ship Cheonan, which went down near the inter-Korean maritime border.

Pyongyang has denied involvement, but suspicion has been rampant over its culpability, especially after Seoul's Defense Ministry said a torpedo explosion was the likely cause of the incident.

Seoul, meanwhile, seems prepared to wait for the results of a multinational probe into the sinking before pursuing a resumption of the talks.

If the findings of the investigation indicate Pyongyang was responsible, the foreign ministry here has said the issue could be taken before the U.N. Security Council ― a move that could lead to further sanctions for the struggling state.

However, China, a permanent member of the council with the power to veto resolutions, is said to be wary of imposing further sanctions as increased instability within the North could lead to an exodus of refugees heading to China. Kim's first trip abroad since his reported stroke in 2008 has been widely reported, but so far, neither North Korea nor China has officially confirmed it.