Present there were Kim Yong Il, premier of the DPRK Cabinet, the minister of Metal Industry, the minister of Agriculture, the minister of Foreign Trade, the minister of Culture and others.

It was attended by Wen Jiabao, premier of the State Council, the minister of Foreign Affairs, the minister of Commerce, the minister of Culture, and other officials concerned and people from all walks of life of China.

Wen Jiabao in his speech made at the ceremony recalled that over the past six decades since the opening of diplomatic relations between the two countries China and the DPRK have made a positive contribution to the development in the two countries and the defence of peace in Northeast Asia and the rest of the world, firmly supporting and closely cooperating with each other and working hard together.

We have deep reverence for the leaders of the elder generation of the two countries who provided the great Sino-DPRK friendship, he noted.

He stressed that it is the consistent stand of China to steadily develop the Sino-DPRK friendly relations and bring greater benefit to the two peoples.

He expressed the conviction that thanks to the concerted efforts of the two sides the Sino-DPRK friendship would develop with greater vitality and bear richer fruits.

Kim Yong Il in his speech noted that the DPRK-China friendship was provided and developed by President Kim Il Sung and Chairman Mao Zedong and Premier Zhou Enlai and other revolutionaries of the elder generation, adding that the tradition of the bilateral friendship is the common treasure to be invariably carried forward and developed by the peoples of the two countries.

He stated that it is not only the will of General Secretary Kim Jong Il but the consistent stand of the Workers' Party of Korea and the government of the DPRK to boost the DPRK-China friendly relations.

The Workers' Party of Korea and the DPRK government will make positive efforts to produce practical results by successfully holding colorful events for the "year of DPRK-China friendship" with the close cooperation with the Chinese party and government, he stressed.

Then there was a joint performance given by artistes of the two countries.