Present there were Zhang Yannong, president, Wu Hengquan, editor-in-chief, and He Chongyuan, vice-president, of Renmin Ribao, and Ji Jae Ryong, DPRK ambassador to China.

Kim Ki Ryong conveyed the greetings from General Secretary Kim Jong Il to Hu Jintao and Li Changchun.

Li Changchun expressed deep thanks for this and requested the head of the delegation to convey General Secretary Hu Jintao's warm regards and his own to General Secretary Kim Jong Il.

He recalled with deep emotion the facts that he was received by President Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il when he visited the DPRK several times.

Kim Jong Il visited China twice this year and exchanged with Hu Jintao views on developing the relations between the two parties and countries and other issues of common concern and reached a consensus on them, he said, adding that this gave further impetus to the development of the Sino-DPRK friendly relations.

The Workers' Party of Korea founded by Kim Il Sung is the one with glorious revolutionary traditions and strong fighting efficiency, he said, stressing that the Korean people have achieved big progress in the revolution and construction under the leadership of the WPK.

He hoped that the Korean people would achieve greater successes in the building of a great prosperous and powerful nation under the leadership of the WPK headed by Kim Jong Il.

It is the invariable policy of the party and government of China to steadily consolidate and develop the traditional Sino-DPRK friendship, he noted, expressing belief that the relations between the two parties and countries would develop on a higher stage thanks to the concerted efforts of the two sides.

Meanwhile, Wang Jiarui, head of the International Liaison Department of the C.C., the Communist Party of China, met the delegation and had a talk in a friendly atmosphere on the same day.