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North Korea sends special envoy to China

Kim Jong-un

A special envoy of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been sent to China for unspecified reasons, North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency reported this morning.

“Choe Ryong-hae, the chief of the General Political Bureau of the North Korean military, departed from Pyongyang by airplane on May 22 to visit to the People’s Republic of China as a special envoy of respected comrade Kim Jong-un,” the KCNA reported in a one-sentence dispatch.

The KCNA didn’t disclose the purpose of the visit or any other specific schedule.

Choe Ryong-hae

Choe is known to hold the top position in North Korean military in charge of guarding against any anti-regime ideology. While other military officials have been demoted to four-star-general by Kim Jong-un, Choe remains one of few North Korean vice marshals.

His visit to China, the closest ally of Pyongyang and its biggest trading partner, came ahead of a Washington-Beijing summit on June 7-8 between Barack Obama and China’s President Xi Jinping. South Korean President Park Geun-hye is also preparing for her first meeting with Xi at the end of June.

By Kim Hee-jin [heejin@joongang.co.kr]