Xi hosts North Korean premier as China alliance marks 65 years

Chinese President Xi Jinping met North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song in Beijing on Friday as the neighbouring allies prepared to commemorate the 65th anniversary of their friendship and mutual-defence treaty.

Pak arrived in the Chinese capital earlier in the day for a three-day visit and was scheduled to attend an event marking the anniversary of the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

The meeting came one month after Xi visited Pyongyang for the first time in seven years. During that trip, he and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed to expand cooperation across political, economic and cultural fields.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his wife Ri Sol Ju, walk with Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, first lady Peng Liyuan, during a departure ceremony following a state visit to Pyongyang, North Korea, June 9, 2026

Treaty remains China’s only active mutual-defence pact
 

China and North Korea signed the treaty on July 11, 1961, formally committing both countries to friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance.

The agreement remains China’s only active mutual-defence pact and has long served as the central institutional foundation of Beijing’s alliance with Pyongyang.

Relations between the two countries have warmed considerably since late 2025, with both sides increasing high-level diplomatic exchanges.

Passenger train services and direct flights between Beijing and Pyongyang have also resumed as the neighbouring states rebuild links that had been disrupted in previous years.

Pak rose to premiership after long party career

Pak, 70, became North Korea’s premier in December 2024, taking charge of the cabinet after a lengthy career within the ruling Workers’ Party.

He began his political work in propaganda and party discipline before moving through a series of positions covering industrial development, science and education policy.

Pak has long been regarded as a member of Kim’s inner circle and has worked closely with the North Korean leader since the early years of his rule after he took power in 2011.

He is also believed to have worked with Kim before his succession, during the period when he was being prepared to take over the country’s leadership.

Overseas appearances have been rare

Pak was briefly removed from prominent roles in the early 2020s for reasons that were never officially explained, during the period when North Korea imposed some of the world’s strictest Covid-19 border restrictions.

His overseas travel has been limited, with most known trips taking place in 2018 and 2019 and involving visits to China and Russia.

In October 2019, he travelled to Moscow while serving as head of the Supreme People’s Assembly.

His latest Beijing visit places him at the centre of efforts by China and North Korea to reinforce their alliance and publicly reaffirm the treaty that has underpinned their relations for more than six decades.

Source: Reuters