North Korea’s official news agency KCNA and broadcast media on the evening of June 17 unanimously announced that Chinese President Xi Jinping would be paying a “state visit” to Pyongyang from June 20 to 21 “at the invitation” of Kim Jong Un.

This marks the first Chinese president visit to North Korea since Hu Jintao went to Pyongyang for a slightly longer sojourn in 2005, from October 28 to 30.

Xi’s visit follows Kim Jong Un’s four visits to China between March 2018 and January 2019. During his last summit with Xi in January, the North Korean leader asked Xi to make an