"Awaiting desired response in stalled nuke talks with US," says Kim Jong Un in meeting with Xi Jinping

Kim and Jinping agreed to work together to create a bright future of inter-party and inter-state relations at a new starting point in history, the state-run news agency reported.

This screengrab taken of a video released by CCTV on June 20, 2019 shows Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) shaking hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during their meeting in North Korea's capital Pyongyang. - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Pyongyang on JUne 20 during a historic visit to burnish an uneasy alliance, with the two men each facing challenges of their own with US President Donald Trump. (Photo by CCTV / CCTV / AFP) / - China OUT / -----EDITORS NOTE --- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / CCTV" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - NO ARCHIVES

New Delhi: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Pyongyang on Thursday in the first visit by any Chinese leader to the N Korean capital in 14 years. In the meeting, Kim said that his country is waiting for a desired response in stalled nuclear talks with the United States. As per the Chinese broadcaster CCTV, Kim said, "North Korea would like to remain patient, but it hopes the relevant party will meet halfway with North Korea to explore resolution plans that accommodate each other's reasonable concerns.” Kim and Jinping agreed to work together to create a bright future of inter-party and inter-state relations at a new starting point in history, the state-run news agency reported. Xi became the first Chinese head of state to visit Pyongyang in 14 years and the fifth since the two nations established diplomatic relations in 1949. The Chinese President and his wife, Peng Liyuan, arrived at Pyongyang's Sunan International Airport earlier in the day and were greeted by the North's leader and his wife, Ri Sol-ju, the People's Daily reported. Close to 10,000 North Koreans waved flowers and chanted welcoming slogans at the airport, it said. Xi and Kim reviewed an honour guard, with the Chinese leader being greeted with a 21-gun salute. The North's military band performed the national anthems of the two countries. Hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets of Pyongyang, waving flowers and the flags of both the countries and chanting slogans, such as "DPRK-China friendship", as a motorcade carrying the two leaders in a roofless vehicle headed to central Pyongyang. The leaders later held summit talks. "The China-North Korea friendship is a strategic choice made by the two sides with a long-term and overall perspective and will not waver due to changes in the international situation," Xi said during his meeting with Kim, adding that the friendship accords with the aspirations of both peoples, the fundamental interests of both countries and the development trend of the times. Noting that Beijing-Pyongyang ties have now entered a new historical period, Xi said that the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese government "attach great importance to the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries". The Chinese leader said that it was "a steadfast policy of the CPC and the Chinese government to maintain, consolidate and develop China-North Korea relations". For his part, Kim expressed a "hearty" welcome to Xi on behalf of his Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), government and people of North Korea, noting that more than 250,000 people flocked to the streets in Pyongyang to welcome the Chinese leader. The visit, which came upon the 70th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, "represented a huge encouragement and political support for the party, government and people of North Korea and bore great significance in the history of Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)-China relations", he added. Kim said that he fully agreed with "the insightful analysis and future plan Xi made on bilateral relations and that it was an unswerving policy of the DPRK's party and government to carry forward the DPRK-China friendship from generation to generation". (inputs from IANS)