Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Pyongyang is set to start on Monday, as Beijing tests its influence over a neighbor pulled increasingly into Russia's orbit. The two-day trip will be Xi's first to North Korea in nearly seven years and he is expected to hold talks with leader Kim Jong Un. In a commentary published in North Korea's state newspaper ahead of his arrival, Xi pledged "unwavering" friendship and vowed to deepen bilateral cooperation across multiple areas, including the military.