North Korea's foreign minister to visit China soon, KCNA reports

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui. (File photo/Reuters)

North Korea's Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui will visit China soon at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the North's official KCNA news agency reported on Thursday.

KCNA did not elaborate on the timing of the visit or on whom Choe would meet in China.

China's foreign ministry said on Thursday that Choe will be in China from September 27 to 30, making her second visit to the ally in less than a month.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un participated in a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in early September, and according to KCNA he told Xi that Pyongyang would keep supporting China in protecting the ally's sovereignty.

Xi is expected to visit South Korea to attend the Asia-Pacific Cooperation Summit scheduled for October 31-November 1 in Gyeongju, Korea's foreign minister said last week.

South Korea also believes U.S. President Donald Trump is likely to visit the country for the APEC event, although Washington hasn't officially confirmed his attendance.

U.S. and Japanese officials are making arrangements for a trip by Trump to Japan next month, Reuters reported on Thursday.