(2nd LD) Kim tells Xi that N. Korea will support China's interests: KCNA

박보람 / 2025-09-05 07:19:25

(2nd LD) Xi-Kim-talks

▲ This photo, published by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on Sept. 5, 2025, shows leader Kim Jong-un (L) holding hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their talks the previous day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

▲ This photo, published by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on Sept. 4, 2025, shows leader Kim Jong-un (2nd from R, front) holding hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a military parade in Beijing the previous day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

▲ This photo by TASS shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R, front), Chinese President Xi Jinping (C) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (L, front) walking shoulder to shoulder ahead of a military parade at Tiananmen Square on Sept. 3, 2025. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(2nd LD) Xi-Kim-talks

(2nd LD) Kim tells Xi that N. Korea will support China's interests: KCNA

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with KCNA reports, photos; CHANGES headline, lead para; TRIMS)

SEOUL, Sept. 5 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has told Chinese President Xi Jinping that Pyongyang will "invariably" support China's interests, according to the North's state media Friday, as the two sides underscored their commitment to the two countries' constant friendship during their talks in Beijing.

Kim and Xi met bilaterally at the Great Hall of the People on Thursday, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, a day after the leaders and Russian President Vladimir Putin jointly appeared at a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II -- in a show of their solidarity.

Kim told Xi that North Korea "will as ever invariably support and encourage the stand and efforts of the Communist Party of China and the government of the People's Republic of China to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests of the state," according to the KCNA report.

The talks came amid speculation that broadening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow might have put a strain on the traditional relations between China and the North as it could cause an erosion in Beijing's influence over Pyongyang.

Kim said that the friendship between the two countries will remain unchanged "no matter how the international landscape evolves," China's Xinhua News Agency reported earlier, as he stressed Pyongyang's "firm" commitment to continuously deepening and developing bilateral ties.

Xi said the Communist Party of China and his government "highly" value the friendship between the two countries, and are ready to maintain, consolidate and develop "sound" ties with the North, according to the news agency.

"China and the DPRK are good neighbors, good friends and good comrades who share a common destiny and stand by each other," Xi was quoted by Xinhua as saying. DPRK is short for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The KCNA quoted Xi as expressing his willingness to successfully develop bilateral relations, noting that the two countries are good friends who share a destiny and help each other.

Kim said that China, through its military parade, showed its firm "determination to defend world peace and clearly demonstrated its important international position and influence on this occasion."

Xi noted that Kim's attendance "served as an important occasion of showing the firm will of the DPRK side to resolutely defend the outcome of the victory in the World War II."

They also discussed the issue of intensifying high-level visits and informed each other of their governments' policy positions in the field of external relations, the KCNA said.

Touching on the Korean Peninsula issue, Xi said that China has maintained an "objective" and "impartial" stance and stands ready to continue strengthening coordination with the North in order to help maintain peace and stability on the peninsula, according to Xinhua.

He also called for joint efforts to enhance "strategic" coordination in international and regional affairs to safeguard the two countries "common interests."

"China is willing to strengthen high-level exchanges and strategic communication, deepen exchanges of experience in party and state governance, and enhance mutual understanding and friendship with the DPRK," Xi was quoted as saying.

During the talks, Kim stressed Pyongyang's readiness to deepen "mutually beneficial" economic and trade cooperation with China, while noting its willingness to work with China to strengthen exchanges at various levels and share experience in party building, economic development and other fields, Xinhua said.

Thursday's meeting marked the leaders' first in-person meeting in more than six years.

On Wednesday, Kim held bilateral talks with Putin, where the two sides discussed "long-term" plans for bilateral cooperation, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency.

Though Xi, Kim and Putin gathered in the Chinese capital this week, a trilateral meeting did not materialize amid worries that their three-way gathering could send a more explicit message against the United States following their joint appearance at the military parade, a showcase of China's rising military heft.

Kim's visit to China was seen as his strategic move to bolster his authority at home, efface his image as an isolated ruler, stress his solidarity with the Chinese and Russian leaders against the West, and boost his bargaining power ahead of potential negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Kim's private train was seen leaving a station in the Chinese capital at 10:05 p.m. (local time). It marked his fifth trip to China following the last one in 2019.

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