China's top legislator, Zhao Leji, left, meeting with Choe Ryong-hae, right, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly in Pyongyang, April 11, is seen in this photo carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency the following day. Yonhap

High-ranking officials from North Korea and China attended the opening ceremony of the "Year of DPRK-China Friendship" in Pyongyang, to bolster ongoing relations, Pyongyang's state media said Saturday.

Choe Ryong-hae, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK, and Zhao Leji, chairman of the National People's Congress of China, attended the ceremony at the East Pyongyang Grand Theatre, Friday to mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

In a speech, Choe reaffirmed the "unshakable will to further develop the traditional relations of friendship and cooperation with socialism as the core," the KCNA said.

Choe stressed that bilateral relations were valuable and precious not only because the two countries are geographically close but also because they have been forged in the struggle for a common cause.

Zhao was quoted as saying "the traditional China-DPRK friendship ... has taken deeper root and become more durable and precious no matter the ever-changing international situation."

He also stressed it is "the consistent strategic policy of the Chinese party and government to successfully defend, consolidate and develop the traditional China-DPRK friendly relations," according to the KCNA.

The two officials enjoyed celebratory performances and later met the artists on stage and took photos together, the report said.

Zhao, who arrived in Pyongyang, Thursday, for a three-day visit, is the first high-ranking Chinese official to visit North Korea since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020.

North Korea began resuming exchanges with China, its longtime ally and largest economic benefactor, in a limited manner after partially opening its borders in August last year following its tight COVID-19 border shutdown.

During his visit, Zhao is expected to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. (Yonhap)