Asia

Kim Meets With Xi Amid Surprise Visit to China, Week After Singapore Summit

This is the first meeting between Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-un after the historic summit where the North Korean leader met with the US president in Singapore to discuss the prospects for denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and lifting the sanctions on the DPRK.
Sputnik

Chinese CCTV reported that DPRK leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on Tuesday to discuss the results of the Singapore summit and the steps that are to follow it. Xi Jinping has reportedly praised the summit and its outcomes, specifically the idea of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula as "protecting peace and stability."

READ MORE: China Can Retain Influence Over Nuke Issue Only by Boosting DPRK Ties — Analyst

The official two-day visit was not announced in advance and was made public only after reports surfaced that the North Korean leader's motorcade had been spotted on the streets of Beijing, impressing Twitter users with its significant security detail back during his previous visits to China and to Singapore summit.

The current visit to China is Kim Jong-un's third as DPRK leader, with the previous one taking place days ahead of the historic summit with the US president. Earlier in May Trump expressed the opinion that Xi Jinping could be influencing the North Korean leader.

Trump and Kim met in Singapore on June 12 and held one-on-one talks, which were followed by consultations in an expanded format and a working lunch. As a result, the two leaders signed a joint statement, which consisted of four main pillars implying the restoration of the US-North Korean relations, denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula, and recovery of the remains of prisoners of war and soldiers who went missing in action during the Korean War. Apart from that, President Trump agreed to halt "war games" jointly conducted with South Korea, which served as another source of tensions between them and DPRK.

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