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Summary Li Keqiang visited N. Korea a day before the United States and N Korea are due to meet in Geneva.
The man widely expected to succeed Wen Jiabao as Chinas premier arrived in North Korea Sunday, state media said, amid hopes for progress on restarting six-nation talks on the Norths nuclear disarmament. Li Keqiang, Chinas vice premier, visited the capital Pyongyang the day before the United States and North Korea are due to meet in Geneva for their second round of direct discussions aimed at reviving the long-stalled negotiations.Li was accompanied by officials from Chinas foreign and commerce ministries, Xinhua news agency said, but gave no further details of the agenda. China is Pyongyangs closest ally and a major economic partner. The official visit is scheduled to last until Tuesday, Chinas foreign ministry said. Chinas Ambassador to North Korea, Liu Hongcai, said the visit would deepen ties and make positive contributions to peace and stability in the region, Xinhua reported.Total trade between the two neighbours surged an annual 87 percent in the first seven months of this year to $3.1 billion, he said in an interview with the agency. North Korea depends on China for oil and food. Afterwards Li, likely to take over from Wen next year, is due to visit South Korea, North Koreas arch-rival.South Koreas foreign ministry has said that discussions during the two-day visit will focus on the Korean peninsula where China is pressing to restart stalled six-nation talks on the Norths nuclear disarmament. China has hosted the forum, which includes the two Koreas, Russia, the United States and Japan, since 2003.South Korea, supported by the US and Japan, says the North must take steps to show it is serious about scrapping its atomic arsenal before the six-nation talks can resume. China is South Koreas biggest trade partner and relations were upgraded to a strategic cooperative partnership in 2008. The US and North Korea will hold two days of talks. They had their first round of direct talks in New York in July, which ended with Washington demanding a firm commitment from Pyongyang to disarm.
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