North Korea Prioritizes Putin Over Xi in New Year’s Greetings, Reflecting Strained China Ties

North Korean media recently only briefly mentioned Chinese President Xi Jinping’s New Year’s greeting card, in contrast to their detailed publication of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s congratulatory letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Analysts suggest this disparity reflects the strengthening ties between North Korea and Russia, possibly due to troop deployments, while highlighting the cooling relations between North Korea and China.

On Wednesday, the Korean Central News Agency reported receiving New Year’s greeting cards from several world leaders, including Xi Jinping and his wife, as well as the presidents of Vietnam, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Belarus. However, Xi’s greeting was grouped with others, and its content was not disclosed.

In stark contrast, North Korea extensively covered Putin’s exchange of New Year’s greetings. Last week, the Workers’ Party of Korea’s official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, published the full text of Putin’s greeting card to Kim on its front page. On New Year’s Eve, the newspaper reported Kim’s reciprocal greeting to Putin on its second page. Last year, North Korea mentioned Putin after Xi when reporting on received greetings, but this year, Putin seems to be given much greater prominence.

The shift in North Korea-China relations was also evident during last year’s 65th anniversary of diplomatic ties, which North Korea had declared the “Year of North Korea-China Friendship.” North Korean media have not reported any closing ceremony for this friendship year. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning declined to answer reporters’ questions about the absence of a closing ceremony. This has led some to speculate that the anniversary year concluded without a formal closing event.

Kim also congratulated Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on the 66th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. This is Kim’s first time publicly acknowledged sending such a message to the Cuban president since Cuba established diplomatic relations with South Korea. Notably, this year’s message omitted phrases like “brotherly Cuban people,” “traditional and comradely friendly cooperation,” and “full support and solidarity,” which were present in last year’s message. North Korea has shown signs of discomfort since Cuba and South Korea established diplomatic ties in February of last year.