China says Kim Jong Un pledged to denuclearize North Korea in Xi meeting

China&#039;s President Xi Jinping met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Beijing.

(Image credit: AFP/Getty Images)

published 28 March 2018

China said Wednesday that it won a pledge from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to denuclearize during his surprise "unofficial" visit to China this week that included a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. In exchange, China promised to uphold its friendship with Pyongyang.

The voyage was the first known trip abroad for Kim since he became leader of North Korea in 2011. Xi reportedly invited Kim to make the visit, which began March 25 and wrapped up Wednesday. Kim traveled with his wife, Ri Sol Ju, and his top aides, including Choe Ryong Hae, who is considered the country's No. 2 leader.

Kim and Xi held "successful talks," China's Xinhua news agency reported, in what was seen as a run-up to North Korea's planned talks with South Korea and the U.S. Read more about the visit at The Washington Post.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.