Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry Photo: VCG

The China-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, will remain in effect all the time until China and North Korea reach an agreement to amend or terminate it according to the Treaty's regulation, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday, responding to a question about whether the treaty will be automatically extended.

The signing of the Treaty was a strategic decision made with foresight by the elder-generation leaders of China and North Korea, and a major event in the history of bilateral relations between the two countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on Wednesday.

The Treaty aims to strengthen China-DPRK friendly cooperation and safeguard regional peace and stability, Wang said.

Guided by the spirit of the Treaty, China and North Korea have been supporting and collaborating closely with each other over the past 60 years. The Treaty "has not only given a strong boost to the causes of socialist construction of the two countries, but also made important contributions to the regional and global peace and stability," said Wang.

China is willing to work with North Korea to carry forward the tradition, look to the future and earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties and countries, Wang said.

[China is ready to] push forward the traditional friendly cooperative relations between China and North Korea in accordance with the development of the times and common aspiration of the two peoples, Wang said. 

[It is looking forward to] bringing more benefits to the people of the two countries, and making new contributions to international and regional peace, stability, development and prosperity, he added.

In response to another question asking about the telephone conversation between Liu Xiaoming, special representative of the Chinese government on Korean Peninsula Affairs, and Sung Kim, the US special representative for North Korea, Wang said the that Chinese side elaborated on its position on the Korean Peninsula issue and its view on the outcome of the US' North Korea policy review.

The US should attach importance to addressing the legitimate and reasonable concerns of North Korea, and support inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation, Wang noted.

"China's position on the Korean Peninsula issue is always clear," Wang said. "The issue of the Korean Peninsula is at China's doorstep. China will continue to play a constructive role, until lasting peace and stability is achieved on the Korean Peninsula."

Global Times