N.K. leader sends floral basket to cemetery in China in honor of fallen soldiers

SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent floral baskets to China to pay tribute to fallen soldiers from the 1950-53 Korean War, state media said Friday, in an apparent effort to highlight his strong and friendly relations with the ally.

This came a day after Kim visited the cemetery of fallen Chinese soldiers in the North's South Pyongan Province and paid his respects to mark the anniversary of their participation in the conflict.

Kim sent floral baskets to the cemetery of "the martyrs fallen in resisting America and aiding Korea" in the Chinese city of Shenyang and to a monument in Dandong City in Liaoning Province, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

Ceremonies for laying floral baskets took place on Oct. 22, it added.

"Written on the ribbons of the floral baskets were letters 'Martyrs of the Chinese People's Volunteers Will Be Immortal,'" it said.

The North Korean ambassador to China, staff members of the diplomatic missions and other officials working in China attended the ceremony.

China fought alongside the North against South Korean, U.S. and United Nations troops during the Korean War that ended in an armistice on July 27, 1953. They mark the 70th anniversary of China's entry into the war Sunday.

Pyongyang has been seeking to maintain closer ties with its traditional ally amid an impasse in nuclear negotiations with Washington.

Earlier this week, Kim pledged to further boost friendly relations with China in a reply message to Chinese President Xi Jinping, who sent a congratulatory letter to Kim to mark the 75th founding anniversary of the North's ruling Workers' Party.

julesyi@yna.co.kr
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