Chinese premier greeted by N. Korean leader Kim in Pyongyang

(ATTN: UPDATES lead, paras 2-10, 15, with N.K. media report on Kim at airport, details)
SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Yonhap) -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived Sunday in Pyongyang,
where he was greeted by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in a visit that comes
amid indications the North may return to negotiations over its nuclear program.
Kim's appearance at the Sunan Airport was his first since 2007, a gesture of the
country's high expectations for the guest.
Kim "greeted Wen Jiabao at the airport," the North's Korean Central News Agency
said. Wen is the highest-ranking Chinese figure to visit Pyongyang since Chinese
President Hu Jintao traveled there in 2005.
Wen's three-day visit is officially aimed at attending celebrations in Pyongyang
for the 60th anniversary of the allies' diplomatic relations, but it is widely
viewed as focused on diplomacy for reviving the disarmament talks, as well as
China's expected economic assistance to the North.
Diplomatic sources in Seoul say Kim may make an "important announcement" at the
end of Wen's stay, likely presenting a positive message toward rejoining the
six-party talks.
The six-party forum also involves South Korea, the United States, Japan and
Russia. North Korea quit the talks in April in protest of U.N. criticism over its
long-range rocket launch, which was widely viewed by Western powers as a test of
its ballistic missile technology. Responding to subsequent U.N. sanctions,
Pyongyang conducted its second nuclear test in May.
In a shift to conciliatory diplomacy that started in August, North Korea invited
Stephen Bosworth, U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, to seek a
breakthrough in the stalled nuclear talks. It also restored joint programs with
South Korea, such as reunions for families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Last month, the North Korean leader said he wanted to resolve the nuclear dispute
"through bilateral or multilateral talks." Kim's remarks to a visiting Chinese
presidential envoy, Dai Bingguo, carried by China's Xinhua News Agency, were
viewed as an indication that the country wants to return to the disarmament
talks, although it was unclear whether he meant the six-party talks or a new
format.
Washington is expected to announce a trip to Pyongyang by Bosworth after Wen's
visit.
North Korea, meanwhile, hailed Wen's visit as opening a "new chapter" in its
relations with China. The neighbor fought on the North's side in the 1950-53
Korean War and is still the biggest donor to the impoverished country.
Wen's visit "clearly illustrates that the party and the government of China
attach great importance to the friendship" between the two countries, the Rodong
Sinmun, the newspaper of the Workers' Party, said in an editorial. The report was
carried by the Korean Central Broadcasting Station, a state-run radio channel.
The trip will "open a new chapter in the history of the friendship" and be "a
great encouragement to the Korean people" who are striving to build a prosperous
nation, the paper added.
China's foreign ministry indicated last week that its government would provide
new assistance to the North on the occasion of Wen's trip. The two nations will
also sign several deals on topics ranging from economy and trade to education and
tourism during the visit, it said.
Wen was accompanied by Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Wang Jiarui, head of the
Chinese communist party's international department, and Wu Dawei, China's chief
envoy to the nuclear negotiations, Xinhua said.
Kim last appeared at the Pyongyang airport in October 2007 to greet Nong Duc
Manh, secretary general of Vietnam's Communist Party. Kim is widely believed to
have suffered a stroke in August last year, but now appears to be healthy and
firmly in charge of the country, Seoul and Washington officials say.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)