North and South Korea's leaders will hold their first summit in more than a decade next month.

The talks between Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon-Jae-in will be held on the 27 April.

The date was announced after high-level officials from the two sides met in the border village Panmunjom on Thursday to prepare for the summit.

It comes amid a global diplomatic push to resolve the standoff over the North's nuclear programme.

The leaders of the two Koreas have only held talks twice since the 1950-53 Korean War, in 2000 and 2007.

It comes after news emerged that Mr Kim visited Beijing and met with President Xi Jinping in his first known trip to a foreign country since he took power in 2011.

China's official Xinhua News Agency said Mr Kim made an unofficial visit to from Sunday to Wednesday.

Mr Xi held talks with Mr Kim at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing and he and his wife Peng Liyuan hosted a banquet for Mr Kim and his wife Ri Sol Ju, Xinhua said.

They also watched an art performance together, the news agency said.

North Korea's recent diplomatic outreach comes after a provocative year where it conducted its most powerful nuclear test to date.

The change in tactics could be an attempt to ease pressure from heavy sanctions and improve its economy.

Earlier this month, it emerged that US President Donald Trump had accepted an offer of a summit from the North Korean leader.

Mr Trump is set to will meet with Mr Kim by May, a top South Korean official announced.

Washington and Seoul have said Mr Kim previously told South Korean envoys that he was willing to put his nuclear weapons up for negotiation in his talks with Mr Trump.

However, the North has yet to officially confirm its interest in a summit between the leaders.