A delegation visit, headed by a senior leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC), to DPRK on Friday displays China's friendly and active move to maintain and smooth the communication channel between the two countries, experts said.
The CPC delegation led by Liu Yunshan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, was invited by the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) to pay an "official" and "friendly" visit and attend activities to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the WPK, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
Cui Zhiying, a professor specializing in South Korea at Tongji University in Shanghai, told the Global Times that Liu's visit shows that China has attached great importance to its relations with DPRK and an understanding that the long-standing friendship between the two nations needs to continue despite twists and turns.
Jeong Joon-hee, spokesman of Seoul's Unification Ministry on Monday said that DPRK hopes the exchange can "contribute to easing heightened tension on the peninsula and maintaining stability," the Yonhap News Agency reported.
The visit has given rise to expectations in the economic and social sectors. However, Cui cautioned that progress on key issues is not easy to achieve nor can it be easily actualized in one meeting.
"Though breakthroughs on nuclear issues are unlikely to be achieved, small scale financial assistance is promising," Jin Qiangyi, director of the Asia Studies Center at Yanbian University in Northeast China's Jilin Province, told the Global Times.
Jin said that China and DPRK need to dialogue and Liu's visit can help maintain and smooth the channel, which is especially important in the complicated international situation.
China-DPRK relations will not suddenly become perfect nor will it collapse all of a sudden, as the two nations have walked a long path with ups and downs, and neither high expectations nor a dampening tone is a wise mindset when viewing this visit, said a Tuesday commentary published on an official WeChat account managed by the People's Daily.
At least 17 Chinese leaders have visited DPRK in the past 25 years, media reports said.
