Little progress from US-China summit while China continues investment in North Korea

On the subject of North Korea, all that emerged is President Obama saying he and Chinese President Hu Jintao agreed that North Korea must avoid further provocations.

In a joint statement, Obama and Hu appeared to set aside recent rancor over North Korea, which caused alarm with the shelling of a South Korean island and claims of new nuclear advances. But it offered no new ways to contain Pyongyang. So all in all, no breakthroughs.

Meanwhile, a Chinese firm says it wants to invest US$2 billion in North Korea's Rajin-Sonbong region, which the North has been trying to develop as a special economic zone.

Rumors also circulate in northeastern China that a real estate firm in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture is likewise considering investing in Rajin-Sonbong.

A local source said, "According to rumors circulating in the North, the Stalinist country has finished attracting investment amounting to $10 billion in the Rajin-Sonbong region and tangible results will come out in March or April.”

Mr Hu goes to Washington

Chinese President Hu Jintao goes to Washington this week for a crucial summit with his US counterpart Barack Obama which will try to smooth the rocky relationship between the world’s two biggest economies, while trying to move beyond a long-running currency stand-off and nagging trade issues. This is Hu’s first official state visit to the United States and it highlights the changing power structures in the global economy, as China matches its growing economic might with increased political influence on the world stage.

Political discussions will be tricky, as both disagree sharply on how to resolve the nuclear crisis with Chinese ally North Korea. Obama is likely to urge Hu to increase pressure on North Korea.

Chinese vice-foreign minister Cui Tiankai insisted China and the US “have broad common interests and share the same goal on the Korean nuclear issue”.