ANKARA 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to further bolster ties with Beijing on Saturday, praising Chinese President Xi Jinping for sending a delegation to Pyongyang's "Victory Day" celebrations.

During a meeting on Friday with a Chinese delegation, led by Chinese Communist Party Politburo member Li Hongzhong, Kim thanked Beijing for its help during the Korean war in the early 1950s.

The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to working together to address the complicated international situation, develop their friendship and cooperation, and accelerate "socialist construction," the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported.

Pyongyang on Thursday celebrated the 70th anniversary of its Victory Day, marking the Korean war cease-fire in 1953. The event was also attended by a Russian delegation led by Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu.

The Korean war started on June 25, 1950, and ended after the signing of an armistice agreement roughly three years later, ending hostilities, though a peace deal has never been signed.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid