"The participants deepened friendly feelings, conversing with each other on further developing the friendly relations between the parties and peoples of the DPRK (North Korea) and China," the Korean Central News Agency said in a dispatch monitored here.

Chinese delegation leader Wang Jiarui, head of the International Liaison Department, of the Chinese Communist Party's Central Committee, brought a gift for North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, the report said.

The gift was accepted by Kim Ki-Nam, secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea.

China is North Korea's closest ally and the two nation's communist parties pay each other periodic visits.

The meeting took place on Sunday and came just days after Fu Ying, the director of the Asian section of the Chinese foreign ministry, returned to Beijing from Washington where China's efforts to convince the North Koreans to return to the negotiating table were discussed.

The United States revealed last week it had made a rare direct call to North Korea in a bid to convene a second round of six-party talks, which were expected in December but never happened.

North Korea offered recently to freeze its nuclear weapons drive in return for concessions, including an end to US sanctions and a resumption of energy aid.

Washington is holding out for a commitment from Pyongyang to scrap its nuclear programs.

WAR.WIRE