▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R) makes a toast with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a banquet for the Chinese leader at the Mokran House in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo taken from the North's official Korean Central Television the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
▲ A North Korean troupe stages a performance during a concert welcoming Chinese President Xi Jinping at a gymnasium in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (3rd from R, rear) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (3rd from L, rear) attend a banquet for the Chinese leader at the Mokran House in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (3rd from R) holds talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping (3rd from L) at the Kumsusan State Guest House in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

(News Focus) N Korea-China

(News Focus) N. Korea, China reaffirm ties, silent on nuclear issues

By Woo Jae-yeon

SEOUL, June 9 (Yonhap) -- For North Korea, leader Kim Jong-un's recent summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping has served as an occasion to reaffirm its ties with China and earn what appears to be Beijing's tacit acceptance of its nuclear program, experts said Tuesday.

Kim and Xi held summit talks in Pyongyang the previous day -- their first since September in Beijing -- and agreed to strengthen the two nations' traditional ties and expand cooperation in various fields.

Through the summit, the two nations effectively elevated their relations to a "strategic partnership" after years where their ties remained cooled amid North Korea's close alignment with Russia.

Also what was noticeable was the absence of any mention of North Korean nuclear issues or the broader situation on the Korean Peninsula.

It marked a stark departure from Xi's last visit to Pyongyang in 2019, when he said China would work toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. This time, Xi made no such mention -- at least from media accounts from both countries.

"Xi's support for North Korea's socialist cause amounted to the tacit backing for its nuclear program, given that Pyongyang has long cast its arsenal as one of socialism's great achievement," said Lim Eul-chul, professor for far eastern studies at Kyungnam University.

Instead, the Chinese leader called for stronger cooperation across diplomacy, law enforcement and the military, according to Chinese state media. And Xi's call for expanded military cooperation stood out on its own.

A South Korean unification ministry official said Tuesday it was the first time the subject had been raised between the two sides -- at least publicly -- and that Seoul was closely watching for any significant developments.

Behind the call for military cooperation lays a harder truth, Hong Min, a researcher at Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification, wrote in a report.

China had grown uneasy over how close Pyongyang and Moscow had become and wanted a clearer picture of Russia's military posture and how far that partnership had gone, Hong wrote. And it was precisely that unease, he suggested, that may have driven Beijing to pull North Korea back into its orbit, or at least match what Moscow had been offering.

The arrangement appeared to suit both sides: Beijing would tacitly accept Pyongyang's nuclear program and Pyongyang would in turn fall closely in line with Beijing across a range of fronts.

At the summit, Kim pledged to "fully support the policy and stand of the Chinese party and government to defend the core interests on the 'One China' principle."

Kim also reassured Beijing that ties with China remained his country's "most important top-priority strategic work," vowing to do its "utmost to strengthen the bilateral relations."

North Korea, in fact, had made clear that the sensitive topic of denuclearization would not come up in the first place. Days before Xi's visit, Kim inspected a newly operational nuclear material facility and vowed to dramatically expand the country's nuclear arsenal.

Kim's sister followed with a statement declaring North Korea's nuclear status a "line of no retreat," signally Pyongyang had no intention of discussing the matter, let alone giving up on nuclear weapons.

At the summit, the two leaders appeared to find common ground on their longer term interests amid a volatile international environment, recognizing that their goals increasingly align.

They declared their ties had entered a new era, shifting from historical alliance to strategic partnership -- with both sides vowing to deepen practical cooperation to "better benefit the two countries and peoples."

At a press conference Monday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said the goal of denuclearizing the North should remain unchanged, but that ignoring Pyongyang's reluctance to give up its arsenal would be irresponsible.

"Let's not give up our denuclearization goal ... (but seek) no additional production of nuclear material, no transfer of it abroad, a moratorium, a stop to the intercontinental ballistic missile development. We have to set this as a short-term goal and negotiate (with the North)," he said.

(END)

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