Meanwhile, a Chinese foreign minister is in North Korea for the first time in eleven years this week..<br />This rare visit comes just a matter of days after last Friday's historic inter-Korean summit,.. and amid efforts to formally end the Korean War with a peace treaty.<br />Our Oh Jung-hee has more. <br /> With discussions on the way towards declaring a formal end to the Korean War and turning the armistice agreement into a permanent peace treaty,... China is seeking to solidify its role in the negotiations.<br />Meeting with his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-ho in Pyongyang on Wednesday, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said... China will continue to play a (quote) "positive role" in seeking solutions to the Korean Peninsula issue.<br /> He also expressed support for North Korea's efforts towards denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.<br /> Welcoming the success of last Friday's inter-Korean summit, the Chinese foreign minister said... Beijing backs the improvement of inter-Korean relations as well as North Korea settling its security concerns.<br /><br /> He added that the traditional North Korea-China friendship is a shared and precious treasure.<br />The two foreign ministers agreed to improve and strengthen Pyongyang-Beijing relations following their leaders’ decision to meet in the near future.<br /> Bilateral economic cooperation could have been on the table as well... as a North Korean minister in charge of external economic relations accompanied the North Korean side, according to a report from Pyongyang's state media.<br /><br /> This is the first visit to Pyongyang by a Chinese foreign minister in 11 years, raising speculation that China may be concerned about being possibly left out of the discussions to formally end the Korean War with a peace treaty.<br /><br /> Last Friday’s Panmunjom Declaration between the leaders of Seoul and Pyongyang stipulates that ensuring peace on the Korean Peninsula could be discussed trilaterally with the U.S. <br /> or in four-way talks with the U.S. and China, leaving open the possibility of China's exclusion.<br />Oh Jung-hee, Arirang News. <br />
