Xi Jinping visits North Korea to reaffirm China’s strategic partnership

Chinese President Xi Jinping made his first trip to North Korea in seven years, meeting Kim Jong‑un at a highly choreographed ceremony in Pyongyang. The visit marked the 65th anniversary of the 1961 China‑North Korea Friendship Treaty and was used by Beijing to stress that it remains Pyongyang’s most important economic and diplomatic backer.

During talks Xi emphasized "strategic coordination and cooperation" and pledged to expand joint work in trade, agriculture, health, construction, science and technology. While acknowledging the region’s shifting security dynamics, China signalled that its priority is the stability of the regime rather than pushing for denuclearisation. The trip also aimed to counter Russia’s growing influence in the peninsula, reaffirming China’s role as a key ally amid North Korea’s deepening military ties with Moscow.

Chinese state media quoted Xi saying the traditional friendship between China and North Korea is "forever invincible" and that the bilateral relationship is entering a "new historic turning point".