Li Changchun, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met in Beijing on Friday with a delegation from the Rodong Sinmun, the leading official newspaper of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The delegation, headed by the editor-in-chief of the Rodong Sinmun, Kim Jung Hyop, is visiting at the invitation of the People's Daily from May 6 to 10.

Li said in the past six decades, China-DPRK friendly cooperation has made great contributions to the socialist construction of both nations and helped safeguard regional peace and stability.

It is an unswerving principle of the CPC and the Chinese government to continue consolidating and strengthening the China-DPRK friendship, Li noted, saying that in the current new situation, China is ready to work with the DPRK to enrich the content of bilateral friendly cooperation and carry forward the traditional friendship.

Exchanges between the People's Daily and the Rodong Sinmun, both mouthpieces of the ruling party in each country, play an important part in party-to-party relations between China and the DPRK, Li said.

Li expressed the hope that the two newspapers' cooperation would help promote mutual understanding and trust between the two peoples and advance China-DPRK friendly, cooperative relations.

Kim said that with the support of top leaders of both nations, the DPRK and China have enjoyed continued growth in their bilateral friendship. The two newspapers have played important roles in deepening DPRK-China friendship, he noted.

He said he believed that the Beijing Olympic Games would surely be successful.

(Xinhua News Agency May 10, 2008)