Kim Jung Un leaves Beijing with diplomatic wins, recognition
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Kim Jong Un’s visit to Beijing showcased his growing diplomatic influence, with China and Russia signaling greater acceptance of the DPRK as a nuclear power while challenging US dominance.
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DPRK leader Kim Jong Un, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands prior to their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Thursday, Sept 4, 2025 (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP).
DPRK leader Kim Jong Un left Beijing this week with significant political achievements, which reinforced his position on the global stage.
His participation in China’s military parade, alongside President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, underscored the DPRK’s growing geopolitical influence and signaled that Pyongyang is increasingly being treated as a de facto nuclear power.
Before his latest trip, Kim and Xi had met five times, each summit highlighting the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. However, the joint statements following Thursday’s talks made no mention of denuclearization, a striking departure that analysts see as a strategic victory for Kim.
“China will not formally endorse North Korea as a nuclear power, but the latest meeting showed that it was no longer insisting on its denuclearization,” commented Lee Byong-chul of the Institute for Far Eastern Studies in Seoul to the New York Times.
Russia-North Korea military cooperation in Ukraine
Kim’s value to Moscow has grown as Pyongyang has aided Russia in its war with Ukraine, supplying it with troops and weapons.
South Korean intelligence estimated that around 2,000 DPRK soldiers have been killed while fighting with Russia. During his meeting with Kim in Beijing, President Putin expressed gratitude for the support.
With closer ties between Russia and the DPRK, Xi Jinping extended an invitation to Kim to attend the Beijing military parade, marking their first summit in six years.
China’s strategic balancing between Pyongyang and Moscow
Positioned prominently between Xi and Putin, Kim projected unity with two of Washington’s main rivals. The event highlighted China’s ambitions to challenge US dominance and reinforced Kim’s portrayal of a “neo-Cold War” atmosphere.
DPRK’s state-run newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, gave front-page coverage to Kim’s Beijing visit. Both Kim and Xi pledged to deepen ties “regardless of international changes,” with Kim also seeking expanded trade with China. Despite its partnership with Russia, Pyongyang still relies heavily on Beijing for commerce.
Previously, both Moscow and Beijing had aligned with Washington in imposing UN sanctions on Pyongyang. But that cooperation has unraveled amid the worsening rivalry between China and the US and the war in Ukraine. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov went as far as to declare in 2024 that the idea of denuclearizing DPRK was a “closed matter.”
Analysts argue that the DPRK’s strengthened ties with China and Russia reduce the chances of renewed dialogue with Washington. “The threshold for a North Korea–US summit has now become higher,” Yang Moo-jin, former president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told The New York Times.
