ID :
188897
Thu, 06/16/2011 - 05:35
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https://www.oananews.org//node/188897
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North Korea, China Hold Strategic Dialogue in Pyongyang
In a quite unusual manner, North Korea and China held a strategic dialogue between their ruling parties recently in Pyongyang in an apparent bid to consolidate their traditionally cooperative and friendly relations.
The so-called strategic dialogue took place on June 10 when a delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) visited the North to discuss matters in common and increasing friendship with the North's governing Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
It is unprecedented for the socialist country to hold such a strategic dialogue with another country.
The rare meeting also took place two weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong-il made a weeklong trip to his country's staunchest ally in late May. Kim held summit talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and other key Chinese figures including Premier Wen Jiabao.
North Korea's dependence on China has been increasing ever since the international community accused the North of having nuclear ambitions. Despite international condemnation for its missile and nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, the socialist country, under tough United Nations sanctions, intensified business ties with China and stepped up efforts to draw investors.
The KCNA reported that at the strategic dialogue, both sides informed each other of their party activities and exchanged views on the issue of boosting the friendly and cooperative relations between the two parties and countries and other matters of bilateral concern.
Other details on the conference and dialogue were not immediately available, but observers said the North and China appeared to have discussed matters on further increasing their cooperative relations in politics, economy and diplomacy since Kim Jong-il's recent trip to China, the largest benefector of the impoverished North.
Kim Jong-il himself met with the Chinese delegation headed by Li Yuanchao, head of the Communist Party's Organization Department. Li is also a member of the Political Bureau and the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPC.
Held at the Mansudae Assembly Hall in the North Korean capital, the strategic dialogue was attended, from the North Korean side, by Choe Thae-bok, chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly and also member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the WPK, the KCNA said.
Other participants from the Chinese side were Wang Jiarui, head of the International Liaison Department of the Central Committee of the CPC; Sun Zhengcai, secretary of the Jilin Provincial Committee of the CPC; and Liu Hongcai, Chinese ambassador to North Korea.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il showed great interest in the dialogue and greeted the delegation on June 13. According to the KCNA report, Li conveyed Hu's warm greetings to the North Korean leader and presented gifts to Kim Jong-il and his youngest son and heir apparent, Kim Jong-un.
"Kim Jong-il's recent unofficial visit to China was of particularly important significance in developing the unity and traditional friendly and cooperative relations between the two parties and two countries onto a higher stage," Li said, noting that the Chinese party, government and people have high expectations for the contributions made by Kim Jong-il to the development of Sino-DPRK (North Korea) friendship.
"Kim Jong-il expressed the will of the WPK and the DPRK government to further boost the friendly and cooperative relations in conformity with the noble intention of the leaders of the elder generations of the two countries and the desire of the two peoples," the KCNA said.
Both the DPRK and China should learn from each other and swap experience in many aspects, Kim said, predicting a successful dialogue between the delegations of the WPK and the CPC in Pyongyang this time. Kim Jong-il later hosted a luncheon for the guests.
China's official Xinhua News Agency also reported on June 13 from Pyongyang that Li said Kim's successful visit to China in May pushed bilateral friendly cooperation to a higher level.
China is willing to work with the DPRK to fulfill the consensus reached between the top leaders of the two parties and countries, strengthen strategic communication, deepen political mutual trust, expand practical cooperation and maintain communication and coordination on major regional and international issues, he said.
Li expressed his belief that under Kim's leadership, the DPRK would reach its goal of becoming a prosperous and powerful nation in 2012, the centennial of the birth of North Korean founder and Kim Jong-il's father, Kim Il-sung.
"Under the current complex international situation, it is of great importance for the two parties and countries to boost solidarity and cooperation and communicate on socialist construction experience," Li was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
The DPRK would like to join hands with China to enhance high-level contacts, maintain close coordination, boost practical cooperation, expand cultural exchanges and safeguard regional peace and stability, he said.
Upon Li's arrival in Pyongyang, he also met North Korea's ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, and Choe Thae-bok, chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly.
More than 10 years have passed since the head of CPC's Organization Department has visited North Korea.
On June 14 when he was leaving the North, Li said in a speech that China and the DPRK are friendly neighbors sharing mountains and rivers, adding: "President Kim Il-sung, together with Chinese comrades, waged the struggle against the common enemy during the anti-Japanese revolutionary struggle," according to a report of the KCNA.
Bilateral exchange and cooperation between the two countries are growing stronger this year. Li said Kim's recent China visit contributed to developing a new stage of the traditional China-DPRK friendship.
With Kim's visit to China in late May, North Korea appears to have begun to experiment with Chinese-style economic development. The reclusive state and its ally have started work to create two joint economic zones that they plan to develop into commercial and industrial centers by attracting foreign investment.
On June 8, North Korean and Chinese officials attended a large-scale ceremony on an island located at the western end of their border to launch the construction of a joint economic zone. The plan is to develop Hwanggumphyong Island, which abuts Dandong of China, into a center for commerce, tourism, information technology and manufacturing.
The next day on June 9, high-ranking officials of the two countries broke ground in Rason, a port city at the northeastern tip of North Korea, for the construction of a road that would link it with Hunchun of China. The two countries plan to turn Rason into a trade, logistics and tourism hub that would also serve as a base for high-tech industries, timber processing and ship repair.
Ri Su-yong, North Korea's newly appointed top investment envoy, attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the development of Hwanggumphyong. Chen Deming, China's minister of commerce, also attended, according to sources.
The ceremonies mark the opening of a giant joint industrial project between North Korea and China, something that was emphasized during Kim Jong-il's summit with Chinese President Hu Jintao last month, South Korean intelligence sources have said.
The North and China signed a memorandum of understanding last December in Beijing for the development of Hwanggumphyong as well as Rason Port. According to the North's outline for the project, China will be in charge of the area on a long-term lease, and four separate industrial areas will be for communications manufacturing, tourism, contemporary farming and industrial processing.
A port will also be constructed connecting Hwanggumphyong to the Sinuiju area. Roads will be built across the island, and two bridges will connect the island with Dandong. North Korea tried unsuccessfully to develop its northeastern area as an industrial zone in 2002 and 2006.
An informed source also said that North Korea has separately leased a pier in Rason to Switzerland.
The joint economic zone projects are thus likely to significantly expand economic exchanges between the two countries. The expected surge in economic cooperation could be seen as a deepening of North Korea's already heavy reliance on China. Last year, the North's trade reliance on China was 83 percent.
The so-called strategic dialogue took place on June 10 when a delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) visited the North to discuss matters in common and increasing friendship with the North's governing Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
It is unprecedented for the socialist country to hold such a strategic dialogue with another country.
The rare meeting also took place two weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong-il made a weeklong trip to his country's staunchest ally in late May. Kim held summit talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and other key Chinese figures including Premier Wen Jiabao.
North Korea's dependence on China has been increasing ever since the international community accused the North of having nuclear ambitions. Despite international condemnation for its missile and nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, the socialist country, under tough United Nations sanctions, intensified business ties with China and stepped up efforts to draw investors.
The KCNA reported that at the strategic dialogue, both sides informed each other of their party activities and exchanged views on the issue of boosting the friendly and cooperative relations between the two parties and countries and other matters of bilateral concern.
Other details on the conference and dialogue were not immediately available, but observers said the North and China appeared to have discussed matters on further increasing their cooperative relations in politics, economy and diplomacy since Kim Jong-il's recent trip to China, the largest benefector of the impoverished North.
Kim Jong-il himself met with the Chinese delegation headed by Li Yuanchao, head of the Communist Party's Organization Department. Li is also a member of the Political Bureau and the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPC.
Held at the Mansudae Assembly Hall in the North Korean capital, the strategic dialogue was attended, from the North Korean side, by Choe Thae-bok, chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly and also member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the WPK, the KCNA said.
Other participants from the Chinese side were Wang Jiarui, head of the International Liaison Department of the Central Committee of the CPC; Sun Zhengcai, secretary of the Jilin Provincial Committee of the CPC; and Liu Hongcai, Chinese ambassador to North Korea.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il showed great interest in the dialogue and greeted the delegation on June 13. According to the KCNA report, Li conveyed Hu's warm greetings to the North Korean leader and presented gifts to Kim Jong-il and his youngest son and heir apparent, Kim Jong-un.
"Kim Jong-il's recent unofficial visit to China was of particularly important significance in developing the unity and traditional friendly and cooperative relations between the two parties and two countries onto a higher stage," Li said, noting that the Chinese party, government and people have high expectations for the contributions made by Kim Jong-il to the development of Sino-DPRK (North Korea) friendship.
"Kim Jong-il expressed the will of the WPK and the DPRK government to further boost the friendly and cooperative relations in conformity with the noble intention of the leaders of the elder generations of the two countries and the desire of the two peoples," the KCNA said.
Both the DPRK and China should learn from each other and swap experience in many aspects, Kim said, predicting a successful dialogue between the delegations of the WPK and the CPC in Pyongyang this time. Kim Jong-il later hosted a luncheon for the guests.
China's official Xinhua News Agency also reported on June 13 from Pyongyang that Li said Kim's successful visit to China in May pushed bilateral friendly cooperation to a higher level.
China is willing to work with the DPRK to fulfill the consensus reached between the top leaders of the two parties and countries, strengthen strategic communication, deepen political mutual trust, expand practical cooperation and maintain communication and coordination on major regional and international issues, he said.
Li expressed his belief that under Kim's leadership, the DPRK would reach its goal of becoming a prosperous and powerful nation in 2012, the centennial of the birth of North Korean founder and Kim Jong-il's father, Kim Il-sung.
"Under the current complex international situation, it is of great importance for the two parties and countries to boost solidarity and cooperation and communicate on socialist construction experience," Li was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
The DPRK would like to join hands with China to enhance high-level contacts, maintain close coordination, boost practical cooperation, expand cultural exchanges and safeguard regional peace and stability, he said.
Upon Li's arrival in Pyongyang, he also met North Korea's ceremonial head of state, Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, and Choe Thae-bok, chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly.
More than 10 years have passed since the head of CPC's Organization Department has visited North Korea.
On June 14 when he was leaving the North, Li said in a speech that China and the DPRK are friendly neighbors sharing mountains and rivers, adding: "President Kim Il-sung, together with Chinese comrades, waged the struggle against the common enemy during the anti-Japanese revolutionary struggle," according to a report of the KCNA.
Bilateral exchange and cooperation between the two countries are growing stronger this year. Li said Kim's recent China visit contributed to developing a new stage of the traditional China-DPRK friendship.
With Kim's visit to China in late May, North Korea appears to have begun to experiment with Chinese-style economic development. The reclusive state and its ally have started work to create two joint economic zones that they plan to develop into commercial and industrial centers by attracting foreign investment.
On June 8, North Korean and Chinese officials attended a large-scale ceremony on an island located at the western end of their border to launch the construction of a joint economic zone. The plan is to develop Hwanggumphyong Island, which abuts Dandong of China, into a center for commerce, tourism, information technology and manufacturing.
The next day on June 9, high-ranking officials of the two countries broke ground in Rason, a port city at the northeastern tip of North Korea, for the construction of a road that would link it with Hunchun of China. The two countries plan to turn Rason into a trade, logistics and tourism hub that would also serve as a base for high-tech industries, timber processing and ship repair.
Ri Su-yong, North Korea's newly appointed top investment envoy, attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the development of Hwanggumphyong. Chen Deming, China's minister of commerce, also attended, according to sources.
The ceremonies mark the opening of a giant joint industrial project between North Korea and China, something that was emphasized during Kim Jong-il's summit with Chinese President Hu Jintao last month, South Korean intelligence sources have said.
The North and China signed a memorandum of understanding last December in Beijing for the development of Hwanggumphyong as well as Rason Port. According to the North's outline for the project, China will be in charge of the area on a long-term lease, and four separate industrial areas will be for communications manufacturing, tourism, contemporary farming and industrial processing.
A port will also be constructed connecting Hwanggumphyong to the Sinuiju area. Roads will be built across the island, and two bridges will connect the island with Dandong. North Korea tried unsuccessfully to develop its northeastern area as an industrial zone in 2002 and 2006.
An informed source also said that North Korea has separately leased a pier in Rason to Switzerland.
The joint economic zone projects are thus likely to significantly expand economic exchanges between the two countries. The expected surge in economic cooperation could be seen as a deepening of North Korea's already heavy reliance on China. Last year, the North's trade reliance on China was 83 percent.
