North Korea sends envoy to Beijing amid downturn in relationsJune 1, 2016 - 13:19 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - North Korea has sent an envoy to Beijing to brief Chinese officials on recent political developments amid a downturn in relations between the formerly close communist neighbors, the Associated Press reports. Ri Su Yong, chief of the ruling Workers Party of Korea's International Department, held talks Tuesday with his Chinese counterpart Song Tao, the Chinese Communist Party's International Department said on its website. It said Ri briefed Song about last month's Workers Party congress and discussed other unspecified issues of mutual concern. The two also reaffirmed the traditional friendship between the countries and pledged to boost inter-party exchanges in order to "shore-up and develop China-North Korean relations and strive to advance regional peace and stability," the department said. Beijing-Pyongyang ties have cooled significantly this year under North Korea's young leader Kim Jong Un, largely due to his regime's aggressive pursuit of nuclear weapon and missile technology, AP says. Although China remains the North's biggest source of diplomatic support and economic help, Beijing this year agreed to punishing new sanctions on the regime and observers say trade relations between the two have declined dramatically. While the May party congress was North Korea's biggest political event in decades, experts on North Korean politics said there was less top-level personnel reshuffling at the event than expected, underscoring the stability of Kim's powerbase. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | About 32,000 rally in Yerevan to deman Pashinyan’s resignation About 31,700 people attended an opposition rally on Thursday, May 9 in Yerevan demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Armenian, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister to meet in Almaty Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov will meet in Almaty. Viva-MTS: Tech solutions to modernize infrastructure of border village The border village has been the focus of Viva-MTS and the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Values since 2015. Ucom's fixed network launched in Artashat To mark this occasion, the company has introduced a special offer exclusively for Artashat residents. |