 Throughout the 1950s, Zhou worked to tighten economic and political relations between China and other Communist states, coordinating China's foreign policy with Soviet policies promoting solidarity among political allies.In 1952, Zhou signed an economic and cultural agreement with the Mongolian People's Republic, giving "de facto" recognition of the independence of what had been known as "Outer Mongolia" in Qing times.Zhou also worked to conclude an agreement with Kim Il-sung in order to help the postwar reconstruction of North Korea's economy.