Xi Vows Deeper North Korea Ties After 2-Day Visit as China Tries to Restrain Kim
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Jun 11
Xi Vows Deeper North Korea Ties After 2-Day Visit as China Tries to Restrain Kim
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Jun 11
Summary
Two days of Xi Jinping-Kim Jong Un talks ended with pledges to expand trade, tourism, investment and education links, with Xi calling the summit a "new historical starting point."
Analysts said Beijing's main aim was less symbolism than control: Kim has shifted since 2023 from seeking U.S. engagement to confronting Washington, raising the risk China could be dragged into any clash.
65 years after the countries' defense treaty, the clearest test of whether ties are truly deepening may come next month if Beijing unveils military sales or joint naval drills in the Yellow Sea.
Russia's growing sway in Pyongyang added urgency for Xi, as Moscow has traded financial support and recognition of North Korea's nuclear status for weapons and thousands of troops for its war in Ukraine.
Since Trump-Kim talks collapsed in 2019, North Korea has tested more than a dozen ICBMs and expanded uranium and plutonium production, leaving little sign Pyongyang will revisit denuclearization.
Is China losing its influence over North Korea to Russia, or is this a calculated move against US-led alliances?
As North Korea's arsenal grows, will South Korea and Japan inevitably seek their own nuclear weapons?
With Russian tech and a new 'hostile states' policy, has North Korea's nuclear threat become irreversible?
Xi Jinping’s 2026 Pyongyang Visit and the Rising China-Russia-North Korea Axis: Shifting Power, Sanctions Evasion, and Regional Instability
Overview
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s two-day visit to Pyongyang on June 8-9, 2026, highlights Beijing’s strategy to reaffirm its indispensable influence over North Korea and remind the world that Pyongyang remains dependent on China. By engaging directly with Kim Jong-un, Xi aims to project China’s image as a global superpower and underscore its pivotal role in regional stability. The visit also allows China to pursue strategic economic interests while carefully navigating the sensitive issue of denuclearization, signaling that Beijing cannot be sidelined in discussions about the Korean Peninsula’s future.