Present there on invitation were the members of the orchestra headed by Chief Conductor Valery Khalilov, head of the military orchestra service of the Armed Forces of Russia, the charge d'affaires ad interim and the military attache of the Russian embassy here.

Vice Marshal of the Korean People's Army Hwang Pyong So, director of the General Political Bureau of the KPA, high-ranking officers of the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces and officials of the military band of the KPA were present at the reception.

Army Lieut. Gen. Ryom Chol Song and Air Force Col, Gen. O Kum Chol said in their speeches at the reception that the orchestra's visit to the DPRK marked an important occasion in demonstrating the traditional DPRK-Russia friendship and greatly encouraged the army and the people of the DPRK dynamically advancing toward the final victory under the wise leadership of Supreme Commander Kim Jong Un.

They recalled Kim Jong Un highly appreciated the successful performances of the orchestra and extended congratulations to it and took such benevolent step as making sure that a meaningful reception was given for it.

Valery Khalilov and Andrei Nisenbaum, conductor of the orchestra, speaking next, extended sincere thanks to Supreme Commander Kim Jong Un for personally inviting it to visit the DPRK and paying deep attention to it during the whole period of its visit to the DPRK.

Visiting the DPRK, the members of the orchestra came to know well the fact that the DPRK and Russia have the long-standing tradition not only in political and military fields but in the cultural field and it is of weighty significance in boosting the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries to develop military music between the armies of the two countries, they noted.

It is the invariable will of the armies and peoples of the two countries to boost the bilateral traditional relations of friendship, they said, underscoring the need for the armies and peoples of the two countries to join hands and make concerted efforts to boost the Russia-DPRK friendly relations in the future, too.