North Korean Delegation Visits China for Talks

North Korean state media reported today that "a diplomatic delegation from the country is visiting China for talks aimed at enhancing cooperation, at a time when Pyongyang is slowly opening its borders and resuming trade with its neighbors after the closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic." The Korean Central News Agency stated in a communiqué that "Pak Myong Ho, assistant to the Foreign Minister, and his counterpart Sun Yi Dong discussed strengthening strategic cooperation and bilateral relations on Friday, without going into further details." It is rare to publicly mention visits by North Korean officials to China to discuss political issues since January 2020, when Pyongyang closed its borders to curb the spread of COVID-19. The visit of the country's leader Kim Jong Un to Russia to meet with President Vladimir Putin in September was the first foreign trip since before the pandemic.