North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited the symbolically important Mount Baekdu region as the year-end deadline that Pyongyang had given Washington to show flexibility in their nuclear talks nears. 

North Korean state-run media said on Tuesday that Kim visited Samjiyon County in Ryanggang Province the previous day to attend a dedication ceremony for construction projects.

The dedication ceremony was attended by senior officials, including Choe Ryong-hae, president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly. 

Samjiyon County is considered by North Korea to be a sacred place as it is located close to Mount Baekdu which symbolizes the North’s founding family. 

Northern state-run media has in the past publicized visits to the region by Kim ahead of major provocations, including the 2017 Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile launch and Pyongyang's announcement of a “state nuclear force.”