A North Korean diplomatic delegation is in China for talks on strengthening cooperation, marking the highest-ranking official talks between the two nations since Pyongyang lifted COVID-19 lockdown.
The delegation, led by North Korea’s international department director Kim Song Nam, met with Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, according to the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang on Friday.
In a meeting with Kim, Wang voiced China’s willingness to promote bilateral ties with Pyongyang and proposed that the two nations work together to create a “peaceful and stable external environment,” read a statement posted on the embassy’s website.
“The two sides also exchanged views on issues of common interest, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula,” the statement added, without elaborating further.
North Korea last Monday fired ballistic missiles into the sea for the first time in two months as the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Seoul for a democracy conference hosted by President Yoon Suk Yeol.
South Korea’s military said multiple short-range missiles were fired from a region south of the North's capital, Pyongyang, landing east of the Korean Peninsula, adding that it shared information on the launch with the United States and Japan.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the launches after his country’s coast guard also reported the firing of what it said appeared to be a ballistic missile.
“North Korea’s series of actions threaten the peace and security of our region and the international community, and are absolutely unacceptable,” said Kishida at that time, calling the launch a violation of U.N. resolutions.
The North’s missile launch came just after Seoul and Washington finished 10-day large-scale annual joint military drills.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Pyongyang and Beijing. The North declared 2024 as the year of North Korea-China friendship, a designation first introduced in 2009 to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations.
Kim, who used to work as an interpreter for the North Korean founder Kim Il Sung and the former leader Kim Jong Il, is known to have a deep knowledge of Chinese affairs. Wang, meanwhile, is considered the fourth most powerful voice within the Chinese Communist Party.
It is unclear how long Kim would stay in China, but North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported on Friday that the tour will take the North Korean delegation to Vietnam and Laos.
Laos plans to host the ASEAN Regional Forum and other ASEAN-related meetings as this year's chair country. The annual meeting is the sole regional forum joined by North Korea.
Edited by Mike Firn.