North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their first in-person talks in six years, with the two agreeing to support one another ¡°no matter how the international situation may change¡± before Kim departed for Pyongyang late Thursday.

Meeting in Beijing a day after Kim joined Xi on Wednesday for a massive military parade through the heart of the Chinese capital to mark 80 years since Japan¡¯s defeat in World War II, the two leaders looked to firm up a relationship that had taken a back seat to Pyongyang¡¯s closer ties with Moscow.

Kim told Xi that ¡°the friendly feelings¡± between the two countries ¡°can not change no matter how the international situation may change¡± and that North Korea will ¡°steadily develop¡± the relationship and ¡°invariably support¡± China in defending ¡°the sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests of the state,¡± the North¡¯s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.