Pyongyang scrambles to repair China ties as bad economy worsens

Special to WorldTribune.com

By Lee Jong-Heon, EastAsiaIntel.com

SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is moving to improve ties with China that have been strained during much of the young leader’s brief tenure, officials and sources here say.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un visits Farm 1116 on June 1, 2015. / Reuters
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un visits Farm 1116 on June 1, 2015. / Reuters

The motive is said to be economic urgency in Pyongyang which continue to see its commercial ties with its sole patron worsen.

The North’s moves came after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s travel to Shenyang near the border with the North, a trip that could be seen as a message of willingness to improve relations with Pyongyang. Xi also traveled to the nearby province of Jilin on the border. Such successive visits to the northeast region near the North are considered unusual.

According to a separate diplomatic source, China has invited Kim to attend events in Beijing in September marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. “If Kim’s Beijing visit takes place, it means a full restoration of bilateral ties,” the source said.

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