The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Thursday held a reception for a delegation of relatives of Chinese martyrs who were killed in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-1953).

Pak Jae Gyong, vice minister of the People's Armed Forces, which hosted the reception, said the armies and peoples of the two countries had a tradition of cooperating in fighting enemies and constructing socialism.

Guan Youfei, who is head of the delegation and deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense, said the relatives of the Chinese martyrs were the envoys of the friendship between China and the DPRK, and they would like to make more efforts and contributions to strengthen and develop that relationship.

The traditional China-DPRK friendship, which is fostered by the elder generation of revolutionaries of the two countries, will develop into a new level under the attention of both countries' top leaders, Guan said.

The delegation included Liu Songlin, widow of Mao Anying, who was the son of prestigious Chairman Mao Zedong, and family members of Huang Jiguang and Qiu Shaoyun, who were famous war heros. The delegation arrived in Pyongyang on May 3 for a six-day visit.