China must press North Korea on denuclearization

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit North Korea on June 8–9, his first trip there in seven years since June 2019. He last met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un nine months ago, when Kim traveled to Beijing for China’s Victory Day military parade marking the 80th anniversary. Xi stood alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim at the event, in a rare public appearance together by the three leaders.

The visit comes as China and North Korea mark the 65th anniversary of their treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. It is expected to reaffirm long-standing ties between the two countries. The treaty includes a clause calling for automatic military intervention if either side is attacked, though it has largely been considered inactive since the end of the Cold War. North Korea signed a separate defense pact with Russia two years ago, reviving a formal military alliance and drawing attention to whether Beijing and Pyongyang might adjust their own relationship.

For South Korea, the focus is on how the nuclear issue will be handled. Xi met separately with U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in China last month, and North Korea was discussed in both meetings, according to official readouts that differed in tone. After the U.S.–China summit, Washington said both sides had reaffirmed their goal of North Korea’s denuclearization. Beijing did not mention the issue. After the China–Russia meeting, both sides issued a joint statement opposing “military pressure and unilateral sanctions” against North Korea.

China has not explicitly called for denuclearization in recent years, while maintaining that it has not changed its basic policy on the issue. North Korea, meanwhile, released images of Kim Jong Un inspecting a newly expanded uranium enrichment facility shortly before Xi’s visit, a move that appeared timed to discourage discussion of denuclearization during the trip. Differences between Beijing and Pyongyang on the nuclear issue remain clear.

China’s global influence has grown in recent years. Frustrated with the second Trump administration, Western leaders have increasingly visited Beijing since the start of the year. After Xi’s recent meeting with Trump, some analysts said China is moving closer to a “new type of great power relations” with the United States as a peer competitor. Questions remain, however, about whether Beijing is taking on greater responsibilities alongside its rising status. Xi is expected to encourage Kim to return to denuclearization talks during the visit.