Source: CNN
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has made his first foreign trip since assuming power in 2011, meeting China’s President Xi Jinping in Beijing and discussing giving up the country’s nuclear weapons, according to Chinese state media.
Kim, who made the surprise trip to the Chinese capital at Beijing’s request, said he felt compelled to personally inform President Xi of the rapid diplomatic developments on the Korean Peninsula in recent weeks, Xinhua reported.
The visit represents stunning shift for Kim, who appears to be fashioning himself as a leader in search of a peaceful solution to the crisis on the Korean Peninsula. It’s in sharp contrast to 2017, when Kim oversaw a string of missile and nuclear tests that drew the ire of the international community.
Kim’s trip was the first of three potential meetings with some of the world’s most powerful leaders.
Kim is set to attend a summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in next month, and will later meet US President Donald Trump, in what would be an historic first encounter between a sitting US President and a North Korean leader.
Categories: Asia, China, North Korea