Pyongyang, October 04: Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao arrives on an official visit in Pyongyang amid signs that North Korea may be willing to restart dialogue over its nuclear standoff
North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il, greeted Wen at Pyongyang’s airport on Sunday.
“Respectable comrade Wen Jiabao’s visit to our country this time has a huge meaning in consideration of its historical timing and political significance,” the North’s main Rodong Sinmun newspaper said, adding that the trip “also clearly shows the Chinese party and government think much of China-North Korea friendship.”
Beijing also portrays it as a goodwill trip, but it has added to expectations of a possible resumption of stalled six-nation talks.
North Korea quit the talks in protest at UN censure of its rocket launch in April. The country has been under international pressure to return to nuclear disarmament talks.
The situation worsened after Pyongyang staged a second atomic weapons test in May, incurring stronger UN sanctions.
—–Agencies