AUSTRALIA PERSPECTIVE

Canberra brings to the file the angle of diplomatic grammar: why did Xi, accustomed to having world leaders come to him, make an exception and travel in person? Australian coverage notes that since the start of 2026, 'dozens of dignitaries have arrived in Beijing' — including Trump and Putin days apart — to 'renew, reset and rebuild' their relationships with China. That Xi added Kim Jong-un to his agenda by traveling to Pyongyang himself 'is a big departure from his usual playbook,' all the more so as it is his first overseas trip of the year and he is otherwise reducing his travel. Australian analysts read it as a 'need to court Kim.' The Sydney Morning Herald frames the central stake: Xi is 'feted in Pyongyang as Kim swivels to Moscow.' That is the whole tension of the summit: China is trying to regain its grip on an ally that, since supplying military support to Russia in Ukraine, has drifted from its orbit. Coverage relays the concrete elements of the 'important consensus' — expanded exchanges in diplomacy, law enforcement and military affairs — but also the 'concerns' over the absence of any discussion of the nuclear program. For Australia, an AUKUS member anchored to Washington, this regional rebalancing reads as one more data point in the rivalry with Beijing.