China's Xi to visit North Korea for first time since 2019

Chinese President Xi Jinping will travel to Pyongyang next week for a state visit at the invitation of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, marking his first visit to the country since 2019, according to official media reports from both capitals. The two-day trip beginning on Monday represents Xi's first overseas journey this year, with Chinese state media noting the visit comes at Kim's specific request.

Visit follows summits with Trump, Putin

The announcement follows a period of intense diplomatic activity in Beijing, with Xi hosting US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Chinese capital last month. The timing underscores North Korea's continued strategic importance to China amid complex great-power competition in the Asia-Pacific region.

Xi and Kim last met in September when the North Korean leader attended a Chinese military parade in Beijing commemorating the 80th anniversary of Victory Day, according to state media reports. That appearance marked Kim's second visit to China this year, reinforcing personal ties between the two communist neighbors facing mounting Western pressure.

Previous visits and leadership continuity

Xi's 2019 visit to Pyongyang was his first state visit to North Korea since taking office in 2012, establishing a precedent for high-level exchanges between the allies. He had previously traveled to the country in 2008 as China's vice president during the rule of Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, who died in 2011 after nearly two decades in power.