— China’s premier says North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is in the country to learn from its reforms — the latest push to get the reclusive communist country to remold its faltering economy.
The confirmation that the secretive Kim was in China came from Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who told South Korean President Lee Myung-bak that Beijing had invited Kim to study China’s economic reforms, according to a statement by Lee’s office.
Wen and Lee were in Japan for a three-nation summit.
“We invited to give a chance to understand the Chinese development and use it for their own development,” Wen was quoted as saying in the statement. An official with the South Korean presidential office said Monday that Wen’s comments were confirmation Kim was in China. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.
