Xi Jinping to Visit North Korea in Bid to Reassert Influence

Chinese President Xi Jinping will make a state visit to North Korea on June 8-9, his first trip to Pyongyang in seven years, as Beijing moves to shore up ties with its only formal treaty ally amid North Korea’s deepening military cooperation with Russia.

The visit, announced simultaneously on Friday by China’s Xinhua News Agency and North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), comes at the invitation of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. It marks Xi’s first overseas trip of 2026 and follows a month of high-stakes diplomacy in which he hosted both U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing.

Context

This year marks the 65th anniversary of the 1961 China-North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance — Beijing’s only defense pact with any nation. According to Al Jazeera, China remains North Korea’s largest economic partner, accounting for up to 95 percent of total trade and 85 percent of its exports.

Relations between Beijing and Pyongyang have undergone significant shifts since the COVID-19 pandemic froze cross-border exchanges. While China has historically been North Korea’s primary patron, Pyongyang has increasingly aligned with Moscow, supplying troops and weapons for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Mao Ning said the two leaders would exchange views on bilateral ties and issues of “mutual interest.” As reported by the South China Morning Post, Mao stated: “This year marks the 65th anniversary of the signing of the China-North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance. The two sides will take this visit as an opportunity to promote bilateral relations to keep pace with the times and achieve greater development.”

Key Developments

Xi’s last visit to North Korea was in June 2019, when he was greeted at Pyongyang International Airport by Kim with full military honors, including a 21-gun salute. That visit was the first by a Chinese leader in 14 years. Since then, five North Korea-China summits were held between 2018 and 2019, but the pandemic brought high-level exchanges to a halt.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Pyongyang in April 2026, calling for enhanced coordination on regional issues and declaring that “the traditional friendship between North Korea and China, forged in blood, will never fade or be broken,” according to Chosun Ilbo.

The visit also comes just one day after KCNA reported that Kim called for an “exponential” expansion of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal and disclosed a new uranium enrichment facility — a timing that analysts say is unlikely to be coincidental.

Analysis

Beijing’s strategic calculus appears driven by concern that North Korea is drifting too far into Russia’s orbit. A diplomatic source in Beijing told Chosun Ilbo: “China remembers the experience of former U.S. President Donald Trump bypassing the Six-Party Talks and meeting Kim Jong-un directly. To prevent North Korea’s abrupt actions amid its closeness with Russia, Beijing aims to reaffirm its influence and remind the U.S. that China is a key stakeholder in Korean Peninsula issues.”

Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) told AFP, as cited by Al Jazeera: “This aspect needs to be managed. If North Korea acts in a provocative and belligerent manner, it could trigger regional conflict, which could run counter to China’s interests.”

For North Korea, the visit offers an opportunity to expand diplomatic space and secure economic support from its largest trading partner. Analysts suggest Pyongyang may also seek de facto recognition of its nuclear status through high-level engagement with Xi.

What’s Next

Xi’s visit is expected to produce symbolic demonstrations of solidarity as well as practical agreements on economic cooperation, infrastructure projects — including the long-delayed opening of the New Yalu River Bridge — and the normalization of Chinese tourism to North Korea.

A key question is whether China will use its renewed engagement to moderate North Korea’s nuclear and military policies. Beijing has historically sought stability on the Korean Peninsula, but its ability to influence Kim’s strategic decisions appears more constrained than in the past, particularly as Pyongyang has secured a military partnership with Moscow.

The visit also signals the emergence of a more competitive dynamic between China and Russia for influence in North Korea, despite their broader strategic partnership. As Modern Diplomacy notes, Beijing is seeking to reaffirm that it remains the indispensable power in shaping the Korean Peninsula’s future.

South Korea expressed hope that the exchanges between North Korea and China will contribute to peace and stability on the peninsula, while Japan and the United States are closely monitoring the visit for signs of closer military or strategic coordination.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shakes hands with China’s President Xi Jinping in this file photo. (KCNA via Reuters / Modern Diplomacy)