July 05, 2021 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during a Workers’ Party meeting in Pyongyang in a photograph provided by North Korea on June 18. Twitter/ke_sitare With media reports suggesting that North Korea is struggling to navigate its way out of an impending famine, Kim Jong-un ’s message to President Xi Jinping on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party is seen by analysts as a sign that strong ties with Beijing will help Pyongyang navigate any pandemic-induced food or economic crises. Kim on Thursday (July 1) said he would push to further upgrade relations with Beijing, and raise bilateral friendship “to a new strategic point as required by the times and as desired by the peoples of the two countries”.