China's State Counselor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized the significance of China-DPRK friendship and the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula on Friday, while meeting with the visiting Foreign Minister of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Ri Yong Ho in Beijing. 

Wang noted that 2018 has been an extraordinary year for China-DPRK partnership, citing the three meetings between President Xi Jinping and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un and the multiple key consensuses reached between the two.

"With efforts from both China and the DPRK, along with other relevant parties, tensions on the Korean Peninsula are easing. The peninsula issue has returned to the path of political settlement. This meets the common wishes of multiple parties, including the DPRK", said Wang.

The Chinese foreign minister emphasized that maintaining, solidifying and further developing China-DPRK ties is a policy that China staunchly adheres to. China resolutely supports DPRK to follow a path that suits its own national conditions and its efforts in keeping stability, boosting economy and improving people's livelihood, he added. 

On further strengthening the partnership between China and the DPRK, Wang called for closer high-level exchanges and more cooperation in various fields. 

He also pointed out that next year's commemorations to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries need to be well planned and conducted. 

Wang also stressed that both sides should continue to push forward the process of the denuclearization of the peninsula, expressing China's hope for the DPRK and the U.S. to maintain dialogue, address each other's concerns, in order to realize the goals set in the DPRK-U.S. joint statement.

In the statement which was signed in June this year, following the first meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim, the U.S. agreed to provide security guarantee to the DPRK in return for Pyongyang's commitment to denuclearization.

China is also in support of the ongoing exchange and communication between the DPRK and its southern neighbor, the Republic of Korea (ROK), for further conciliation and collaboration, Wang said.

Ri agreed with Wang's remarks on the positive progress made between China and the DPRK this year, confirming the DPRK's willingness to accelerate the development of bilateral ties. 

He told Wang that the DPRK has been dedicated to creating a peaceful external environment ever since the Third Plenary Meeting of the Seventh Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). 

The meeting, held in April this year, was aimed at adjusting the country's strategic route to focusing on developing the economy.

Citing the rapprochement between the DPRK and the ROK, and that between the DPRK and the U.S., Ri reinstated his country's stance on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. 

He said the DPRK is ready to build necessary mutual trust with the U.S. and meet it half way. 

He added that the DPRK is willing to maintain communication and coordination with China in order to jointly defend the stability and development of both the peninsula and the region.

Ri is on a three-day visit to China, which began on December 6th. It's the fifth time that the two foreign ministers have met this year. 

(CGTN's Wu Guoxiu also contributed to the story)