Xi Jinping-Kim Jong Un Begin Talks in Pyongyang

Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un/DOCUMENTATION via WIkimedia Commons

JAKARTA - Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have begun their high-level meeting in Pyongyang.

Meanwhile, observers are closely watching whether Xi and Kim will discuss North Korea's nuclear program, which China has recently not criticized.

As reported by ANTARA from Kyodo, Xi made a two-day visit to North Korea until Tuesday (9/6), following his last visit in 2019. The meeting is also expected to reaffirm China and North Korea's commitment to strengthening strategic cooperation after the leaders agreed to strengthen bilateral relations at the summit in Beijing in September 2025.

After the meeting between Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing in mid-May, the White House stated that the two leaders reaffirmed their common goal regarding the denuclearization of North Korea. However, China did not specifically mention the issue in its official statement.

Regarding the question of whether Beijing had secretly approved Pyongyang as a nuclear state, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian reiterated in a press conference on Monday, June 8, China's policy on the Korean Peninsula issue had considered the issue of continuity and stability of the country.

Xi Jinping met Kim Jong Un after his meeting with Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing last May.

On Sunday (7/6), North Korean state media quoted Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong Un's younger sister and a senior official of the ruling party, as saying Trump and Xi's statements on North Korean denuclearization were "false information".

Kim Yo Jong's statement indicates that Pyongyang does not intend to discuss its nuclear program in the summit between Kim Jong Un and Xi Jinping.

Meanwhile, Mitsuhiro Mimura, a professor at Niigata Prefectural University who is well versed in North Korean issues, said Trump may have asked Xi to mediate in the US-North Korea summit, without making denuclearization a prerequisite.

Although Xi does not seem to be abandoning China's ultimate goal of removing nuclear weapons from the Korean Peninsula, Mimura explained that Beijing's basic stance is to let Washington and Pyongyang solve the problem.

In an article published Monday in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper, the official mouthpiece of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), Xi said China and North Korea should oppose hegemony and power politics. Xi also called on North Korea to reject any schemes or actions aimed at reviving militarism and undermining regional security and stability.

Xi's statement, which was also reported by Chinese state media, appeared to be aimed at the United States and Japan.

Recently, Beijing has stepped up criticism of Tokyo's defense buildup policy, led by Prime Minister (PM) Sanae Takaichi, amid bilateral disputes over Takaichi's statement in parliament last November regarding Taiwan.

Takaichi said an attack from mainland China on Taiwan could be considered a "life-threatening situation" for Japan, potentially triggering a response from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to support the United States.

Upon arrival at Pyongyang airport, Kim Jong Un and his wife, Ri Sol Ju, greeted Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan. After Xi got off the plane steps, Kim warmly shook Xi's hand, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The North Korean children then presented flowers to Xi and Peng, who arrived in Pyongyang accompanied by senior diplomats Wang Yi and Cai Qi, the fifth-ranking figure in the Chinese Communist Party.

North Korean and Chinese flags were widely displayed on Pyongyang's main streets to welcome Xi Jinping. The Rodong Sinmun media also reported in its editorial on Monday that North Korea would continue to move forward hand in hand with China.

The Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance between China and North Korea, signed in 1961, contains provisions that guarantee immediate military and other assistance in the event of an armed attack against either country.

Relations between China and North Korea have recently improved after deteriorating due to North Korea's close military cooperation with Russia, marked by the dispatch of North Korean troops to help Moscow in the war against Ukraine.

China is North Korea's closest and most influential ally in economic terms. The two Asian countries fought together in the 1950-53 Korean War against US-led UN forces. China and North Korea have also long described their relationship as "brotherly".