Beijing was “willing to … take the ‘China-DPRK Friendship Year’ event as an opportunity to intensify high-level exchanges, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, promote cultural exchanges, strengthen strategic coordination, and promote the continued development of [bilateral] relations,” a Chinese foreign ministry statement quoted him as saying. DPRK refers to North Korea’s formal name, the Democratic Republic of Korea.

‘At all levels’: China, N Korea vow deeper ties amid no let-up in missile tests

The meeting came shortly after Zhao and his delegation arrived in Pyongyang for a three-day visit.

The string of high-level exchanges have prompted speculation about a potential meeting between Xi and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-un later this year. The pair have not met since Xi last visited Pyongyang in 2019.

Senior officials in the large delegation accompanying Zhao include Communist Party international liaison chief Liu Jianchao, Culture and Tourism Minister Sun Yeli, foreign vice-minister Ma Zhaoxu and commerce vice-minister Li Fei, according to the state-held Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Zhang Baoqun, deputy director of the Chinese military’s international cooperation office, was also in the team, the report said.

KCNA said Zhao’s talks with Choe included issues related to “positively promoting exchange and cooperation in all fields, including politics, economy and culture”.

The pair also exchanged views on the Korean peninsula, according to the Chinese readout, as tensions remain high between North Korea and the US and its regional allies.

02:43

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un says he has lawful right to annihilate South Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un says he has lawful right to annihilate South Korea

Zhao’s visit coincided with a US-Japan-South Korea naval exercise aimed at North Korea starting on Thursday. The trilateral exercise came a day after a historic upgrade in the US-Japan defence partnership as President Joe Biden hosted Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House.

In response, the Chinese foreign ministry said it “strongly opposed practices adhering to the cold war mentality and engaging in small bloc-politics”, and that US-Japan relations should not target other countries and undermine regional stability.

Kim, who inspected a model of Seoul earlier this week, has vowed to “completely annihilate” North Korea’s enemies if provoked. Pyongyang labelled South Korea – also a US treaty ally – as a “principal enemy” for the first time last year amid growing hostility.

Meanwhile, Kim has stepped up engagement with both China and Russia, including a rare visit abroad to the Russian far east last year for talks with President Vladimir Putin. Russia has been accused of buying weapons from North Korea to support its invasion of Ukraine.

04:28

North Korea releases 90-minute documentary on leader Kim Jong-un’s trip to Russia

North Korea releases 90-minute documentary on leader Kim Jong-un’s trip to Russia

Zhao and Choe also signed several agreements, including on customs quarantine and mutual exemptions for diplomatic and official visas.

The Chinese delegation is also expected to attend the opening ceremony of year-long events to celebrate the “China-North Korea Friendship Year”, marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties. A 300-member Chinese performance group arrived in Pyongyang before Zhao to take part in the event.

South Korea’s JoongAng Daily cited a diplomatic source to report last month that Chinese Premier Li Qiang, the country’s No 2 official, had originally planned to attend the ceremony.

The Chosun Daily, another South Korean paper, said Li might want to avoid visiting North Korea ahead of a trilateral summit in Seoul with South Korea and Japan. It will be held around May 26-27, according to Japanese media.

The long-awaited annual summit between the three East Asian powers has not been held since 2019, when it was hosted by China.