BEIJING – Chinese Premier Li Qiang will make a three-day visit to North Korea from Thursday to attend events marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, the Foreign Ministry said.
The trip by China’s No. 2 leader would underscore improving bilateral ties that have been strained by North Korea’s deepening military cooperation with Russia.
Through the premier’s visit, China stands ready to work with North Korea to “enhance strategic communication, strengthen exchanges and cooperation and advance” traditional bilateral friendship and cooperative ties, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Li’s visit would mark the first trip to North Korea by a member of the Chinese leadership since April 2024, when Zhao Leji, who ranks third in the ruling Chinese Communist Party, traveled there to mark the 75th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic relations.
North Korea’s Air Koryo operated a special flight early Tuesday morning from Beijing for guests attending the celebrations in Pyongyang.
China is North Korea’s closest and most influential economic ally. The two countries fought side by side in the 1950-1953 Korean War against U.S.-led U.N. forces, and their relationship has long been described as one of “blood brothers.”
But their ties have apparently cooled recently amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with reports saying thousands of North Korean troops have been deployed to the war.
Last month, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Beijing to attend events marking the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. In his first in-person talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in more than six years, the two agreed to maintain their friendship and deepen economic cooperation.
Meanwhile, Vietnam’s top leader To Lam and former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, chairman of the ruling United Russia Party, are also set to attend the events in Pyongyang.
Kim has also invited Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith to visit for the party’s founding commemorations, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
Pyongyang is preparing to hold a large-scale military parade to mark the founding anniversary, according to a source close to South Korea’s armed forces.
