North Korean Premier Pak Thae-song will arrive in China on Friday for a three-day trip to mark the anniversary of a friendship treaty between the two countries, in another sign of improving ties between the two traditional allies.

This year is the 65th anniversary of the signing of the China-North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance, Beijing’s only formal defence pact, and Pak will be at the head of a party and government delegation.

“China and North Korea are traditional friendly neighbouring countries. Upholding, consolidating and developing China-North Korea relations has always been a steadfast strategic policy of the Communist Party and government,” Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday.

Beijing stood ready to work with Pyongyang to “strengthen strategic communication, deepen exchanges and cooperation, and continuously promote the development of the traditional friendship and cooperative relationship between China and North Korea”, Mao said.

Xi’s trip last month – his first abroad this year and his first to North Korea in seven years – cemented what both sides called a “critical consensus” for a new era of bilateral cooperation.