Xi Jinping Arrives in Pyongyang: China and North Korea Vow to Fight "Hegemony" Together

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A Statement Before the Summit Even Begins

Diplomatic summits usually produce statements at their conclusion. Xi Jinping chose a different approach. Before his arrival in Pyongyang on Monday, the Chinese president published a commentary in North Korea's official state newspaper, Rodong Sinmun — a gesture loaded with political meaning.

In it, Xi declared that upgrading ties with North Korea is China's "unwavering policy." He called on both countries to strengthen exchanges across all areas and to jointly defend what he described as "a fair and just global order."

The language escalated from there. "We must oppose hegemony, authoritarianism, and all attempts and conspiracies to revive militarism that endanger regional security and stability," Xi wrote. He further pledged to work with Pyongyang to promote "fair and orderly multilateralism" and "inclusive economic globalisation."

The target of this rhetoric was left unnamed — but the intended audience was not in doubt.

"Hegemony" — Diplomatic Code for Washington

In the political vocabulary of Beijing and Pyongyang, "hegemony" is a long-established shorthand for American global influence. By publishing this framing in North Korea's state press before the summit, Xi was making a deliberate statement: this visit is not simply about bilateral trade or tourism. It is part of a broader geopolitical alignment.

The commentary also pledged to build a "community of shared human destiny" — a phrase central to Xi's foreign policy doctrine and one now being extended explicitly to North Korea.

For observers in Washington and Seoul, the language will raise alarms. Beijing is not merely re-engaging an isolated ally. It is presenting the China-North Korea relationship as a pillar of an alternative international order — one defined in opposition to U.S.-led alliances and institutions.

Kim Arrives at the Table From a Position of Strength

As we reported ahead of the summit, Kim Jong Un is not coming to this meeting as a dependent supplicant. In the years since Xi's last visit in 2019, North Korea has dispatched thousands of troops to fight alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, built up its nuclear arsenal in defiance of United Nations sanctions, and secured in Moscow a powerful new patron willing to absorb international pressure alongside Pyongyang.

"North Korea is certainly gaining economically from what they're able to provide militarily to Russia," said John Delury, a senior fellow at the Asia Society. "That actually puts North Korea in a position where they may feel more confident to increase the volume of trade and investment with China."

Andrew Gilholm of the consultancy Control Risks put it succinctly: Xi's arrival is "the culmination of a good couple of 'comeback' years for Kim."

Kim Jong Un's posture going into the talks reflects that confidence. Just days before Xi landed in Pyongyang, North Korea announced plans for a 10,000-ton naval destroyer, reaffirmed its status as a nuclear-armed state, and — through Kim's own sister, Kim Yo Jong — flatly rejected any suggestion that denuclearization could be on the agenda. (See our earlier report: Kim's Sister Draws a Hard Line)

The Economic Agenda: Tourism, Trade, and a Bridge to the Future

Behind the ideological posturing, the substantive business of this summit is expected to be largely economic. North Korea is launching a new five-year development plan that prioritizes expanding tourism, housing construction, and cross-border trade.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered North Korea's borders in early 2020, Chinese visitors made up approximately 90% of all foreign tourists entering the country — a modest but meaningful source of hard currency for Pyongyang. Resuming that flow is reportedly high on Kim's wish list.

Also reportedly under discussion: the opening of a long-completed but still-unused bridge over the Yalu River connecting the two countries, and possible joint economic development projects in the border regions shared by North Korea, China, and Russia.

For Beijing's part, China is said to be interested in greater access to the Tumen River estuary along the shared border and navigational rights in waters off North Korea's eastern coastline.

The Nuclear Question — And Beijing's Telling Silence

The most significant unresolved issue hanging over the summit is North Korea's nuclear programme. Beijing has historically called publicly for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. But in April, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Pyongyang and the official joint statement contained no reference to denuclearization whatsoever — a striking omission.

Xi's pre-summit commentary in Rodong Sinmun similarly contained no such language.

"If China's official readout omits the word 'denuclearization,' Beijing has effectively accepted North Korea as a nuclear state, folding the issue into its broader buffer strategy against the U.S.," said Seong-Hyon Lee, a senior fellow at the George H.W. Bush Foundation for U.S.-China Relations.

Kim Jong Un has made his position plain. Earlier this week he called for the "exponential" expansion of North Korea's atomic stockpile. Analysts at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul expect him to continue scaling up both fissile material production and weapons deployment regardless of what is agreed in any summit.

"Kim is emboldened," said Christopher Green, a Korea specialist at Leiden University in the Netherlands. "He feels able to publicly pursue a marked expansion of North Korea's nuclear arsenal with a confidence that comes from knowing that as long as he doesn't foment outright instability in the region, Beijing will not try to stop him."

A Lavish Welcome — With Clear Limits

Xi will almost certainly receive a spectacular reception in Pyongyang. In 2019, thousands of North Korean citizens held up placards forming a giant portrait of Xi's face alongside the Chinese flag. Similar ceremony is expected this time.

But analysts caution that the spectacle should not be mistaken for strategic submission. Kim Jong Un is not about to subordinate himself to Beijing's preferences — particularly on the questions that matter most.

"He's going to give Xi Jinping a welcome befitting of the head of state of their giant neighbor," said Mike Chinoy, a former CNN journalist and author of a forthcoming book on North Korea. "But he's not going to play the pliant 'little brother.'"

The summit concludes Tuesday. Whether its final communiqué includes the word "denuclearization" — or carefully avoids it — will be the clearest signal yet of just how far Beijing is willing to accommodate Pyongyang's nuclear reality.

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Sources

1. Reuters – "China's Xi says he will work with North Korea to fight hegemony, North Korean media says" (June 8, 2026): https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-xi-says-he-will-work-with-north-korea-fight-hegemony-north-korean-media-2026-06-07/
2. Reuters – "With China's Xi in North Korea, Kim to project confidence, defiance" (June 7, 2026): https://www.reuters.com/world/china/with-chinas-xi-north-korea-kim-project-confidence-defiance-2026-06-07/
3. Udumbara.net – "Xi Jinping in Pyongyang: Kim Jong Un Negotiates From a Position of Strength": https://udumbara.net (interner Querverweis, bitte finale URL eintragen)
4. Udumbara.net – "Kim's Sister Draws a Hard Line: North Korea Will Never Give Up Its Nuclear Weapons": https://udumbara.net/kims-sister-draws-a-hard-line-north-korea-will-never-give-up-its-nuclear-weapons
5. AP News – "What to know about a rare visit by China's Xi to North Korea": https://apnews.com/article/north-korea-china-kim-jong-un-xi-jinping-8ce14ec5cb46a3c805f182f8e7511b30

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