North Korea sends envoy to China amid downturn in relations

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

North Korea has sent an envoy to Beijing to brief Chinese officials on recent political developments amid a downturn in relations between the formerly close Communist neighbors.
Ri Su Yong, chief of the ruling Workers Party of Korea’s International Department, held talks this week with his Chinese counterpart Song Tao, the Chinese Communist Party’s International Department said on its website.
It said Ri briefed Song about last month’s Workers Party congress and discussed other unspecified issues of mutual concern. The two also reaffirmed the traditional friendship between the countries and pledged to boost inter-party exchanges in order to “shore-up and develop China-North Korean relations and strive to advance regional peace and stability,” the department said.
Beijing-Pyongyang ties have cooled significantly under North Korea’s young leader Kim Jong Un, largely due to his government’s aggressive pursuit of nuclear weapon and missile technology. Kim has yet to visit Beijing since taking power following the 2011 death of his father, Kim Jong Il, who made several trips to China.
Although China remains North Korea’s biggest source of diplomatic support and economic help, Beijing this year agreed to impose new sanctions, and observers say trade exchanges between the two have declined dramatically.
While the May party congress was North Korea’s biggest political event in decades, experts on North Korean politics said there was less top-level personnel reshuffling at the event than expected, underscoring the stability of Kim’s powerbase.
Asked about Ri’s visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she had no additional information, but that China remained committed to “pushing ahead with the denuclearization, peace and stability on the (Korean) Peninsula, and to solving the relevant issues through dialogue and negotiations.
“China’s position on the nuclear issues of the peninsula has not changed, nor has China’s position on building China-North Korea relations,” Hua told reporters at a daily briefing.