The seven-year gap since Xi’s previous visit to North Korea suggests a cooling in bilateral relations. What does it mean that he made the trip to Pyongyang at last?

Xi Jinping visits North Korea for first Kim Jong Un summit in seven years, pledging unconditional support amid nuclear expansion and shifting alliances.

It was Xi's first visit to North Korea in seven years. Xi and Kim last met in Beijing in September after viewing a military parade alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and…