Sino-Soviet relations
From 1960 to the mid-1980s, the Sino-Soviet split – in which Mongolia adopted a consistently pro-Soviet stance, whereas the DPRK's standpoint was usually closer to the Chinese position than to the Soviet one – considerably hindered Mongolian-North Korean cooperation. On several occasions, these disagreements led to various forms of low-intensity friction in Mongolian-DPRK relations. Thanks to the post-1982 improvement of Sino-Soviet relations, in 1986 Mongolia and North Korea signed their first friendship and cooperation treaty. Kim Il-sung also paid a visit to the country in 1988.