North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping met secretly in northern China on Monday and Tuesday, marking the third time Kim has left the Hermit Kingdom since he took power 6 1/2 years ago.
The stealth summit, which was only announced by China state television after Kim had flown out of the country, comes ahead of high-stakes nuke talks with the United States.
Rumors of a visit by Kim, or another high-level diplomat, were sparked when a mysterious plane from North Korea landed in the Chinese port city of Dalian on Monday, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing China's Xinhua news agency.