Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un discussed ongoing denuclearization negotiations and economic development in addition to methods of deepening bilateral ties in their first meeting Thursday, Xinhua reported.

Following two welcoming ceremonies, first at the Pyongyang Sunan International Airport and then the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun – where the mausoleums of the former leaders are housed – the two leaders moved to hold expanded talks at the Kumsusan Guesthouse.

The Xinhua report said Xi “came to consolidate and inherit the friendship between China and DPRK, and to promote the process of political settlement