Top legislator meets DPRK top leader

Pyongyang regards Li Zhanshu's visit as an important opportunity

PYONGYANG - Kim Jong-un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, met China's top legislator Li Zhanshu again on Monday and hosted a special arts performance and a grand reception for the visiting delegation.

The attendance of Li as special representative of Chinese President Xi Jinping at the occasion, held as the DPRK celebrated the 70th anniversary of its founding, fully shows the profound feelings of China's party, government, and people toward him as well as the party, government and people of the DPRK, said Kim.

The DPRK regard the visit as an important opportunity to further strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields and contribute to the benefits of the peoples of the two countries as well as regional peace and prosperity, Kim said.

Li said that he, as Xi's special representative, felt the grand hospitality and sincerity of the party and people of the DPRK immediately once he arrived in the country as well as the warmth of the China-DPRK friendship.

Kim, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, or WPK, and chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK, met Li and the Chinese delegation twice and held a special arts performance and a welcome reception, which show the sincere feelings of Kim himself as well as the party, government and people of the DPRK toward Xi as well as the party, government and people of China, Li said.

Promoted personally by Xi and Kim, the strong friendship between China and the DPRK has been revitalized and reached a new stage, Li said.

China is willing to join the DPRK in implementing the important consensus reached between the leaders of both countries and parties, learn more from each other where governance experiences are concerned and reinforce exchanges and cooperation in various fields, to jointly advance the socialist causes and ties between the two countries, he said.

After the meeting, Li watched a special arts performance with Kim and his wife Ri Sol-ju.

The performance included classical Chinese and Korean folk songs and ended with the song The Everlasting DPRK-China Friendship, showing the DPRK people's sincere will to continue the traditional friendship between the two sides.

Li, together with Kim and his wife, attended the welcome reception after the performance.

A signed letter

Choe Ryong-hae, vice-chairman of the WPK Central Committee, gave welcome remarks at the reception.

The DPRK is willing to work together with Chinese comrades to implement the important consensus reached by the two countries' top leaders during this year's three meetings and continue to promote the traditional friendship, he said.

When Li left Pyongyang after the visit, the DPRK's senior officials and thousands of people in traditional dress saw him off at the airport.

From Saturday to Monday, Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress, visited the DPRK as the special representative of General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee and President Xi.

The top legislator on Sunday presented a signed letter from Xi to Kim.

Xinhua

(China Daily 09/12/2018 page12)