Key Points

The bilateral meeting between Xi and Kim on Thursday came just a day after the North Korean leader joined Russian President Vladimir Putin and Xi at a massive military parade in Beijing marking 80 years since the end of World War II.

The parade showcased China's latest stealth fighters, tanks and ballistic missiles in a highly choreographed display, according to Al Jazeera.

In an article published on Friday by North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim was quoted as saying, "No matter how the international situation changes, the feeling of friendship cannot change" between Pyongyang and Beijing.

"The DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] will as ever invariably support and encourage the stand and efforts of the Communist Party of China and the government of the People's Republic of China to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests of the state," Kim told Xi, according to KCNA.

Xi, in turn, said China and North Korea are "good neighbours, good friends and good comrades" that share "one destiny," adding he was willing to "defend, consolidate and develop" the countries' ties, Al Jazeera reported.

KCNA confirmed that Kim departed Beijing on Thursday, concluding his first trip outside North Korea since meeting Putin in Russia in 2023. Top-ranking Chinese Communist Party officials - including Cai Qi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi - attended a send-off ceremony for the North Korean leader.

The meeting came against the backdrop of deepening coordination among Beijing, Moscow and Pyongyang. On Wednesday, Kim, Putin and Xi held two-and-a-half hours of discussions on "long-term" cooperation plans, Al Jazeera said. Putin and Kim also met separately, with both praising their growing military partnership.

Seemingly unsettled by the gathering, United States President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social: "Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against The United States of America." A Kremlin aide dismissed the remarks, saying "no one even had this in their thoughts."

Putin later sent Kim a congratulatory message for North Korea's foundation day, writing: "Your combat force's heroic involvement in liberating the Kursk territories from the invaders is a distinct symbol of friendship and mutual aid between Russia and North Korea." He added, "I am confident that we will continue to work together to consolidate the comprehensive strategic partnership between our two countries," according to KCNA.

North Korea has controversially dispatched thousands of soldiers to the Russian region of Kursk and supplied artillery ammunition and missiles to Moscow in support of its war against Ukraine, Al Jazeera reported.

During his discussions with Putin in Beijing, Kim reportedly pledged that North Korea would "fully support" Russia's army as a "fraternal duty," KCNA said.

- ANI