(News Focus) N. Korea, China reaffirm ties, silent on nuclear issues

SEOUL, June 9 (Yonhap) -- For North Korea, leader Kim Jong-un's recent summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping has served as an occasion to reaffirm its ties with China and earn what appears to be Beijing's tacit acceptance of its nuclear program, experts said Tuesday.

Kim and Xi held summit talks in Pyongyang the previous day -- their first since September in Beijing -- and agreed to strengthen the two nations' traditional ties and expand cooperation in various fields.

Through the summit, the two nations effectively elevated their relations to a "strategic partnership" after years where their ties remained cooled amid North Korea's close alignment with Russia.

Also what was noticeable was the absence of any mention of North Korean nuclear issues or the broader situation on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R) makes a toast with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a banquet for the Chinese leader at the Mokran House in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo taken from the North's official Korean Central Television the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

It marked a stark departure from Xi's last visit to Pyongyang in 2019, when he said China would work toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. This time, Xi made no such mention -- at least from media accounts from both countries.

"Xi's support for North Korea's socialist cause amounted to the tacit backing for its nuclear program, given that Pyongyang has long cast its arsenal as one of socialism's great achievement," said Lim Eul-chul, professor for far eastern studies at Kyungnam University.

Instead, the Chinese leader called for stronger cooperation across diplomacy, law enforcement and the military, according to Chinese state media. And Xi's call for expanded military cooperation stood out on its own.

A South Korean unification ministry official said Tuesday it was the first time the subject had been raised between the two sides -- at least publicly -- and that Seoul was closely watching for any significant developments.

A North Korean troupe stages a performance during a concert welcoming Chinese President Xi Jinping at a gymnasium in Pyongyang on June 8, 2026, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

Behind the call for military cooperation lays a harder truth, Hong Min, a researcher at Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification, wrote in a report.

China had grown uneasy over how close Pyongya