Kim Jong-un vows to strengthen Pyongyang-Beijing ties, amid efforts to restart US talks
- The North Korean leader says he will make every effort to strengthen ties with China and that the alliance is a ‘strategic option’
- This comes as the North seeks to resume stalled denuclearisation talks with the US
Relations between the two allies, which had cooled over the North’s repeated missile tests, have warmed in recent months through a series of talks between Kim and Xi.
Xi visited Pyongyang in June – the first trip by a Chinese head of state to North Korea in 14 years – while Kim has visited China four times since March 2018.
“Our meetings in Beijing and Pyongyang fully demonstrated before the world my and Comrade General Secretary [Xi’s] firm will to invariably consolidate and develop the DPRK-China friendship,” Kim said, describing it as “precious” and a “strategic option”. DPRK stands for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“I will make every possible effort to successfully carry forward and glorify great DPRK-China friendship on the road of socialism and bring about a rosier future,” Kim added.
