ArrowArtboardCreated with Sketch.Title ChevronTitle ChevronIcon FacebookIcon LinkedinIcon Mail ContactPath LayerIcon MailPositive ArrowIcon Print
Xi and Kim (Nikkei montage/AP/Reuters)
China up close

Xi distances himself from Kim Jong Un to focus on Trump

Chinese leader's top priority is trade deal with Washington

KATSUJI NAKAZAWA, Nikkei senior staff writer | China

TOKYO -- If the Hanoi summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had gone according to plan, Chinese President Xi Jinping was supposed to welcome Kim to Beijing straight afterwards, sometime around the afternoon of March 4.

Kim would have had a big smile on his face, if the scenario had unfolded as the mandarins in Beijing and Pyongyang had envisioned it.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored Content This content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.

Nikkei Asian Review, now known as Nikkei Asia, will be the voice of the Asian Century.

Celebrate our next chapter
Free access for everyone - Sep. 30

Find out more