Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un wave from an open top limousine as they travel along a street in Pyongyang during Xi's visit in this June 20, 2019, photo. AP-Yonhap Experts split on Moscow’s role in Beijing-Pyongyang relations By Kang Hyun-kyung Only a few days remain until Oct. 6, which marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and North Korea.
However, both countries have remained silent, not mentioning the upcoming anniversary or revealing any plans to commemorate it. Experts view this as another indication of strained Sino-North Korea ties. “Their bilateral relations over the past decades were marked by ups and downs.
Most of the time, they were not on good terms,” Choo Jae-woo, a professor of China Studies at Kyung Hee University, said. “Interestingly, however, their strained ties have managed to be restored each time. Given this dynamic, it would be a mistake to try to interpret current events as a means to predict the future of their relations.
” As Mao Zedong likened Sino-North Korea relations to “lips and teeth,” the two countries remain closely connected and dependent on each other. North Korea relies on China, its largest benefactor, for survival, while China continues to support its unpredictable and impoverished neighbor to prevent its collapse. If North Korea were to collapse, China would have to confront the reality of a free, unified Korea with U.
S. troops statione.