Against the backdrop of the accelerated evolution of the once-in-a-century changes taking place in the world, President Xi Jinping’s visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) was not only a formal reaffirmation of the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK, but also a carefully designed blueprint for guiding the development of bilateral relations in the new era.
During the visit, President Xi Jinping highlighted two key concepts—”top-level planning” and “strategic guidance”—which have elevated China-DPRK relations to a new stage that places greater emphasis on direction, institutional support, and long-term planning. The development of China-DPRK relations is not merely the natural continuation of traditional friendship, but also a process of strengthening political mutual trust, practical cooperation, people-to-people bonds, and strategic coordination in the new era, thereby creating a comprehensive framework that supports the development of both countries and regional stability. The essence of this framework lies in transforming historical friendship into practical cooperation, converting political mutual trust into institutional arrangements, and turning bilateral consensus into a constructive force for regional stability.
From his signed article to the speeches delivered during the talks, President Xi Jinping clearly defined the fundamental positioning of China-DPRK relations from a strategic perspective and proposed concrete measures for their development from a practical standpoint.
President Xi Jinping systematically clarified the core positioning of China-DPRK relations from four dimensions. Top-level strategic guidance answers the question of “who will lead the way”; the shared socialist ideals answer “why we move forward together”; the traditional friendship forged through a shared destiny explains “where the foundation lies”; and high-level strategic cooperation points to “how we should work together in the future.” These four dimensions reinforce one another and form a fundamental framework for understanding the nature and trajectory of China-DPRK relations in the new era.
In response to changes in the international environment, President Xi Jinping emphasized that “three things will remain unchanged”: China’s firm commitment to attaching great importance to the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK; its unwavering support for the DPRK’s socialist cause; and the determination of both sides to safeguard their common interests and favourable strategic environment. The deeper significance of these principles lies in the fact that China-DPRK relations are not the result of external pressure or short-term interests, but rather a long-term strategic choice based on shared history, shared interests, shared security, and shared development.
President Xi Jinping put forward four clearly defined and logically progressive proposals for advancing China-DPRK relations. First, high-level exchanges should continue to serve as the guiding principle for consolidating political mutual trust. Despite various challenges, the key to the long-term stability of China-DPRK relations has been the close communication maintained by the top leaders, who have provided direction and set the tone at important historical junctures. High-level exchanges constitute a key mechanism for weathering external challenges and maintaining strategic stability.
Second, both sides should remain committed to improving people’s well-being and enhancing the level of practical cooperation. China is willing to strengthen the alignment of development strategies with the DPRK, expand cooperation, and take the full reopening of cross-border exchanges and the resumption of civil aviation services as opportunities to promote people-to-people interactions.
The more practical the cooperation, the warmer the friendship; the closer the exchanges, the stronger the resilience of the relationship. Third, both sides should uphold the spirit of inheriting friendship and strengthen people-to-people ties. Through participatory, practical and sustainable cultural exchanges, China-DPRK friendship should become part of the daily lives of the people of both countries, especially the younger generation.
Fourth, both sides should adhere to the principles of fairness and justice and enrich the significance of strategic cooperation. The fundamental purpose of China-DPRK strategic cooperation is to safeguard the common security and development rights of regional countries and to promote a more rational adjustment of the international order based on fairness and justice.
Kim Jong Un’s response further demonstrated the DPRK’s high regard for the strategic significance of China-DPRK relations. He stressed that the time-tested DPRK-China relationship is “unbreakable.” Kim Jong Un stated that consolidating and developing DPRK-China friendship in the new era is the choice of the people, the requirement of the times, and an “unchanging strategic choice and steadfast strategic determination” for the DPRK. He described the development of DPRK-China relations as the country’s “most important and primary strategic initiative.”
China has clearly expressed its support for the DPRK’s socialist cause, while the DPRK has explicitly supported China in safeguarding its core interests. Mutual support on major principled issues constitutes an important political pillar of strategic mutual trust between the two sides in the new era. China emphasized the “three things that will not change,” while the DPRK stressed the concepts of “unbreakable” friendship and “strategic choice.” These statements echo one another and together form a two-way political commitment for the stable development of DPRK-China relations in the new era.
The development of DPRK-China relations carries even broader practical significance. High-level exchanges should be transformed into political mutual trust; party-to-party exchanges into mutual learning in governance; practical cooperation into tangible benefits for the people; the inheritance of revolutionary traditions into identity among young people; and strategic cooperation into real capabilities for maintaining regional peace. The significance of this meeting lies not only in the highest-level reception and the most enthusiastic atmosphere, but also in the firm determination to translate political consensus into institutional arrangements, cooperative projects, and long-term momentum.
Standing at a new historical starting point, China-DPRK relations have entered a new stage characterized by head-of-state diplomacy, political mutual trust, practical cooperation, people-to-people bonds, and strategic coordination. The defining features of this new stage are the closer integration of traditional friendship with practical cooperation, the closer coordination between bilateral relations and regional stability, and the closer linkage between bilateral development and global governance.
As President Xi Jinping stated in his signed article, “Time tests and refines all things, and real gold reveals itself in the fire.” Through head-of-state diplomacy, this visit strengthened political mutual trust; through practical cooperation, it expanded the scope of development; through people-to-people exchanges, it reinforced the social foundation; and through strategic coordination, it responded to the changing times and laid a stronger political, cooperative, and strategic foundation for the stable and long-term development of China-DPRK relations in the new era.
Author: Zheng Zhiyong, Dean of the Institute of Country and Regional Studies, Tianjin Foreign Studies University.