Chinese envoy visits Korean War cemetery in North Korea
June 17 (Asia Today) -- China's ambassador to North Korea visited a cemetery for Chinese soldiers killed during the Korean War and emphasized what Beijing describes as the two countries' traditional friendship forged in blood, the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang said Wednesday.
Ambassador Wang Yajun visited the Chinese People's Volunteers cemetery in Tokchon, South Pyongan province, on Tuesday, according to the embassy.
Chinese Embassy personnel and representatives of Chinese residents, companies and news organizations in North Korea attended the ceremony.
North Korean officials accompanying the delegation included Yun Song-il, a section chief in the First Asian Affairs Department of the Foreign Ministry, Kim Jong-o, director of foreign affairs for the South Pyongan Provincial People's Committee, and Sok Kyong-hye, a cultural department official with the Tokchon City People's Committee.
The participants sang China's national anthem, laid a wreath and observed a moment of silence for the soldiers buried at the site.
China refers to the troops it sent to fight alongside North Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War as the Chinese People's Volunteers.
Wang said Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent state visit to North Korea had produced what he called a series of important agreements with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on the development of bilateral relations.
Wang said the two leaders had agreed that China and North Korea should preserve memorial facilities for Chinese soldiers and pass their countries' traditional relationship to future generations.
"We should implement the important agreements reached by the top leaders of the two parties and two countries and inherit and develop the traditional China-North Korea friendship forged in blood," Wang said, according to the embassy.
He also called for promoting what China describes as the spirit of "resisting U.S. aggression and aiding Korea," Beijing's official term for China's participation in the Korean War.
The phrase reflects the Chinese government's interpretation of the conflict.
The Tokchon cemetery was established in October 1974 after remains from several nearby burial grounds were relocated to a single site, according to the embassy.
It contains the remains of 574 Chinese soldiers, including 122 who have been identified and 452 whose identities are unknown.
China has maintained and renovated several cemeteries and memorial sites for Chinese soldiers in North Korea, often holding ceremonies there to underscore the countries' historical ties.
The latest ceremony follows renewed high-level exchanges between Beijing and Pyongyang and public pledges by both governments to strengthen their relationship.
-- Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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This story was originally published June 17, 2026 at 4:29 PM.