Xi Jinping strengthens China‑North Korea ties during Pyongyang visit

Chinese President Xi Jinping made a two‑day visit to Pyongyang on 8–9 June 2026, his first trip abroad this year and the first to North Korea in seven years. He met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, marking the 65th anniversary of the 1961 friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance treaty between the two states. Xi pledged to deepen cooperation in diplomacy, law enforcement, military and economic fields, describing the traditional friendship as “shared mountains, rivers and destiny.”

The summit avoided any direct discussion of North Korea’s nuclear program; the issue of denuclearisation was not on the agenda despite longstanding expectations. North Korean officials reiterated that the country’s nuclear‑armed status is non‑negotiable. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, North Korea possesses about 60 nuclear warheads with material for at least 30 more. The talks were framed as a move to stabilise the bilateral relationship amid growing North Korea‑Russia ties, with China remaining the DPRK’s most important economic partner.