Xi makes rare public call for expanded military exchanges with North Korea; Japanese media raises prospect of Chinese naval access to East Sea via Tumen River; AFP sees move as groundwork for trilateral exercises
Analysts are asking whether North Korea-China-Russia military cooperation is entering a new phase after Chinese President Xi Jinping explicitly called for stronger defense ties with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during summit talks in Pyongyang. Japanese media raised the possibility that China is positioning itself to secure access to the East Sea through the Tumen River estuary, while Western outlets said the move may be laying the groundwork for future trilateral military exercises.
According to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency and Global Times, Xi told Kim on Monday in Pyongyang that the two countries should "strengthen exchanges in diplomacy, law enforcement and the military." Analysts described it as unusual for a Chinese top leader to explicitly name the military when listing areas of bilateral cooperation with North Korea.
Xi also said at the meeting that this year marks the 65th anniversary of the Sino-North Korean Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, calling on the two countries to hold grand commemorative events and reaffirming their traditional friendship.
The treaty obligates each signatory to provide military support if the other comes under external attack. After North Korea conducted a nuclear test in 2006, China in effect disavowed the treaty's mutual-defense character, leading many analysts to regard it as a dead letter — but it returned to center stage at Monday's summit. Japan's Jiji Press said the meeting could mark the start of a more assertive Chinese push into the East Sea, noting that Beijing has been pursuing access through the Tumen River estuary. While China publicly frames the effort in terms of logistics and economic cooperation, analysts say the longer-term goal is securing a military corridor that would allow the Chinese navy to reach the East Sea directly through North Korean waters.
China's navy currently operates mainly in the East China Sea and South China Sea, with limited access to the East Sea. Analysts say deeper cooperation with North Korea could significantly reshape the maritime strategic balance in Northeast Asia.
AFP highlighted Xi's direct reference to military cooperation, saying a top leader's public mention of defense ties goes beyond a routine expression of goodwill and amounts to building a case for future North Korea-China-Russia joint military exercises or broader security cooperation. In fact, China and Russia have for years been expanding joint maritime and air drills in the East Sea, East China Sea and Sea of Japan. North Korea also significantly deepened its military cooperation with Russia last year, keeping speculation about a trilateral security arrangement alive.
Experts said the summit may signal more than a reaffirmation of friendship — it could represent a strategic move to deepen North Korea-China cooperation in response to the US-led Indo-Pacific strategy.
Analysts added that if China, Russia and North Korea move to institutionalize their security coordination at a time when the United States is stretched militarily by the war in Ukraine and the situation in Iran, the security environment in Northeast Asia could face considerable disruption.
At the summit, Xi reaffirmed his support for Kim, saying China's commitment to the traditional friendship "will not change no matter how the international situation evolves." Kim responded by pledging to develop the bilateral relationship from a new historic starting point.
sjy@heraldcorp.com
