Kim Jong Un hosts Xi Jinping from a position of rare strength

Kim Jong Un offered China’s president a grand welcome Monday.

SEOUL, South Korea — Kim Jong Un offered China’s president a grand welcome Monday. But the North Korean leader is playing host from a position of rare strength, and his country has come a long way since Xi Jinping’s last visit seven years ago.

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Kim’s backing of Russia’s war with Ukraine has paid dividends, his weapons program has cemented North Korea’s status as a de facto nuclear state, and an economy that buckled under the pressure of pandemic isolation and sanctions has since rebounded.

Kim was joined by his wife, Ri Sol Ju, as Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, stepped off their plane in Pyongyang, North Korea.