(Corrects to say Wen held talks with North Korean Premier Kim Yong-Il, not supreme leader Kim Jong-Il) * North Korea's Kim Jong-il greets Wen * Gestures show North Korea is wooing China * Wen call for frank exchange of ideas * Nuclear issue expected to come up, analysts say By Chris Buckley BEIJING, Oct 4 (Reuters) - North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il made a rare appearance to personally greet visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao at the start of a trip likely to feature top-level talks on the North's nuclear weapons programme. Premier Wen was "greeted at the airport" by Kim -- the secretive leader who dominates all big decisions in his country -- said a report from China's Xinhua news agency. Wen later held talks with North Korean Premier Kim Yong-Il, no relative to his supreme leader. Kim Jong-il's unusual outing followed by Wen's talks with the Premier was a show of how serious North Korea is about shoring up ties with Beijing, which gives its poor neighbour crucial economic help and diplomatic backing. Kim Jong-il is widely believed to have suffered a serious illness last year, and it is rare for him to personally greet an arriving visitor. Even audiences are uncommon. Wen's trip coincides with the 60th anniversary of formal ties between the two communist neighbours. His three days in North Korea are likely to feature soothing gestures of friendship, and not the hard-nosed negotiations over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons that preoccupy other powers.. But analysts said China, the closest North Korea has to an ally, would not send such a senior visitor unless it had some assurance from Pyongyang that could ease tensions over its nuclear weapons activities, following a second nuclear test and its claims to have made progress in enriching uranium. "This visit will be mostly focused on bolstering bilateral relations and the 60th anniversary, but the nuclear issue is sure to come up," said Zhu Feng, a professor of international security at Peking University. "The key question will be whether North Korea goes beyond its recent statements and directly expresses willingness to return to the six-party (nuclear disarmament) talks," said Zhu. "That would be China's goal for this visit." On arriving in Pyongyang, Wen said he hoped his visit will deepen friendship with North Korea, according to the China News Service, an official news agency. But he also said he wanted "a frank and thorough exchange of views with North Korean leaders on bilateral relations and issues of shared concern," according to the report. AGREEMENTS Chinese officials have given few details about Wen's itinerary. But the retinue of senior Chinese officials travelling with Wen gave some idea of his broad agenda. According to Xinhua, they included Commerce Minister Chen Deming, National Development and Reform Commission chief Zhang Ping, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, and a senior military officer, Liu Zhenqi. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Thursday the two sides will sign agreements on trade, education and tourism during Wen's visit. The six-party talks among the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States ground to a halt about a year ago, with Pyongyang saying it will boycott the sessions aimed at curtailing its nuclear weapons ambitions in return for aid. North Korea in recent months has reached out to regional powers, including the United States, after being hit with U.N. sanctions for the nuclear test in May. Last month, Kim Jong-il told a visiting envoy from China he would work to end his state's nuclear arms programme through multilateral talks. But many observers doubt North Korea is willing to make real steps towards disarmament. "China won't be offering unconditional economic support to North Korea," said Zhu, the professor. "It will be linked, indirectly at least, to progress on the nuclear issue." (Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
Hong Kong police arrest a pro-democracy protester during a demonstration demanding China improve its human rights record, outside the Chinese liaison office in Hong Kong October 1, 2009, as China celebrates ...
