Chinese President Xi Jinping addresses the fifth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, June 15. Xinhua-Yonhap

Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed close cooperation with North Korea on Wednesday to help make progress in negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington on the eve of his first visit to the North as leader.

Xi made the pledge in an op-ed piece to the Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's official newspaper, in a rare move seen as part of efforts to emphasize their friendly and close bilateral relations, a day before he pays a state visit to the communist neighbor.

"We will actively try to contribute to regional peace, stability, development and prosperity by strengthening communication and coordination with North Korea and other relevant parties to make progress in talks and negotiations on Korean Peninsula issues," Xi said.

"The Chinese side expresses its support for North Korea holding a right approach of politically resolving Korean Peninsula issues and trying to address matters of its reasonable concerns through dialogue," he added.

In this June 19, 2018, file photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, poses with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for a photo during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Xinhua-Yonhap