Li Zhanshu’s Upcoming Visit to North Korea May Reflect Chinese Diplomatic Caution

Li Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of China’s rubber-stamp legislature, National People's Congress, at a meeting session in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on March 20, 2018. Damir Sagolj/Reuters

In the evening of Sept. 4, Chinese Communist Party (CCP)-run media announced that by invitation by the North Korean regime, CCP Politburo Standing Committee member and National People’s Congress chairman Li Zhanshu would visit North Korea on Sept. 8 on behalf of Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The news seems to confirm speculation by South Korean media that Xi’s plan to visit North Korea in person had been changed.