Could this handshake be the signal that Kim’s ready to axe his nukes?
KIM Jong-Un is said to be ready to axe North Korea’s nuclear weapons following a secret visit to China.
On his first foreign trip since taking power in North Korea in 2011, he promised he was ‘committed to denuclearisation’ with conditions, the official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, said.
He is said to have made the pledge after Chinese president Xi Jinping reportedly insisted China ‘sticks to the goal of denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula’.
North Korea’s conditions include the end of US pledge to protect South Korea with its nuclear arsenal.
Kim said: ‘The issue of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula can be resolved if South Korea and the US respond to our efforts with goodwill, create an atmosphere of peace and stability while taking progressive and synchronous measures for the realisation of peace.’
China remains North Korea’s only major ally and chief provider of the energy, aid and trade that keep its broken economy afloat.
Kim’s visit highlights Beijing and Pyongyang’s efforts to show support for each other ahead of summits to calm tensions over his nuclear ambitions. He will meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in in late April, and US President Donald Trump in May.
Donald Trump said Mr Xi told him that Kim ‘looked forward’ to meeting the US President.
China said Mr Kim’s visit, from Sunday to Tuesday, was ‘unofficial’, so it was not announced in advance. But it had most of the trappings of a state visit, including an honour guard. Mr Xi hosted a banquet for Kim and his wife Ri Sol-ju. Official reports depicted warm ties between the leaders in an effort to downplay tensions over Mr Kim’s development of nuclear weapons.
The North’s diplomatic U-turn follows a tense 2017 when it conducted its most powerful nuclear test and trialled intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to target the US. It reflects the North’s need to break out of isolation and boost its economy after being squeezed by sanctions.