Kim commits to denuclearization on first visit to China
BEIJING(AFP) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was treated to a lavish welcome by Chinese President Xi Jinping during a secretive trip to Beijing as both sides seek to repair frayed ties ahead of landmark summits with Seoul and Washington.
On his first trip abroad since taking power, Kim and his wife were met with honor guards and a banquet hosted by Xi, according to state media, which confirmed the “unofficial” visit on Wednesday only after Kim had returned to North Korea.
The two men held talks at the
stately Great Hall of the People during which they hailed their nations’ historic relations, with Kim pledging that he was “committed to denuclearization” on the Korean peninsula, according to China’s Xinhua news agency.
“There is no question that my first foreign visit would be to the Chinese capital,” Kim said, according to North Korea’s official KCNA news agency.
“This is my solemn duty as someone who should value and continue the DPRK-PRC relations through generations.”
KCNA said Xi accepted an invitation to visit Pyongyang, which would be his first trip to the North Korean capital since he took power in 2012.
The two men had not met since Kim took over after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in 2011, and relations have been strained as China has backed a raft of UN sanctions against Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile tests.
But Xi underscored the importance of developing ties, saying it was “a strategic choice and the only right choice” and that he was willing to maintain frequent contact withKim “under the new circumstances,” according to Xinhua.
Opportunity to consult Xi and Kim shook hands and sat across from each other at a long conference table, both flanked by officials, at the Great Hall of the People, according to television images which showed the North Korean leader taking meticulous notes.
Later, Xi and his wife, PengLiyuan, waved goodbye while Kim and his spouse, Ri Sol Ju, smiled as they left in a black car.
The first sign that Kim was making his inaugural overseas trip as leader of North Korea was the appearance of an armored train in China.His predecessors, father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung, also preferred rail for their domestic and overseas travels.
Kim is known to travel by air domestically, and is said to have accompanied his father on a 2011 train trip to China, but is believed to have not previously left the North since ascending to power.
Analysts said Xi likely wanted to see Kim to ensure North Korea does not cut a deal with US President Donald Trump that hurts Chinese interests during a summit expected to be held in May.
Beijing had appeared sidelined by Pyongyang’s approaches to Seoul and Washington, but Kim’s visit puts China firmly back at the centre of the diplomatic game.
“It shows that at this crucial juncture, Kim and Xi believed that it was time to seize the opportunity to consult,” Bonnie Glaser, a China expert at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, told AFP.