Present there on invitation were Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Liu Hongcai and staff members of his embassy and Chinese guests and students here.

Kim Yong Il, secretary of the C.C., WPK, and officials concerned were present.

Kim Yong Il said in his speech that Kim Jong Il's visit to China in June 1983 marked a historic event of weighty significance in boosting the traditional DPRK-China friendship generation after generation.

He recalled that senior officials of the party and state of China enthusiastically welcomed Kim Jong Il, who paid a maiden visit to their country as most important state guest and accorded him cordial hospitality with all sincerity.

Kim Jong Il, setting greatest store by the DPRK-China friendship provided by President Kim Il Sung, exerted great efforts to make the deeply rooted friendship flourish and develop, he noted, and continued:

It is the noble duty and obligation of the present generation to steadily boost the precious DPRK-China friendship associated with great efforts of the leaders of the elder generation of the two parties and countries.

The recent visit paid by a special envoy of Comrade Kim Jong Un to China marked an important occasion in steadily boosting the DPRK-China friendly relations, wealth common to the peoples of the two countries, as required by the new times.

It is the unshakable political stand of the WPK and the government of the DPRK to steadily develop the DPRK-China friendship, he said, stressing that the WPK would in the future, too, to boost with vitality and dynamism the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries.

Liu Hongcai said that General Secretary Kim Jong Il visited China several times to forge close relations with Chinese party and state leaders and worked heart and soul to boost the Sino-DPRK friendly and cooperative relations.

China and the DPRK are the friendly neighbors linked by the same mountain and rivers, he said, stressing that it is the consistent stand of the Chinese party and government to steadily develop the Sino-DPRK friendly relations.

The Chinese side deems it important to invariably develop the Sino-DPRK friendly relations on a strategic height and from a long-term viewpoint, he noted.

He underscored the need to further value the Sino-DPRK friendship, the precious common treasure of the two peoples, and carry forward and develop it generation after generation.

He recalled that the special envoy of First Secretary of Kim Jong Un visited China and met with General Secretary Xi Jinping and other leading officials of China and had an in-depth and candid exchange of views on issues of common concern.

The relations between the two countries at present have entered a new historic phase, he said, underlining the need to promote common development on the principles of mutual respect, mutual benefit and co-prosperity and thus bring welfare to the two peoples.