Pyongyang specializes in modernizing Soviet weapons systems.
(Photo: AP)
Moscow Moscow has confirmed a planned meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vladivostok. “At the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Chairman of the State Council of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Kim Jong Un will pay an official visit to Russia in the next few days,” the Kremlin said on its website on Monday.
The media had previously reported that Kim had boarded his armored train in Pyongyang towards the border. Although there are no official details yet, there is speculation that Putin and Kim will meet at the economic forum in Russia’s Far Eastern metropolis of Vladivostok.
The forum started on Sunday and runs until Wednesday. Wednesday is also mentioned as a possible date for the meeting between the two leaders. The city is only around 200 kilometers from the North Korean-Russian border and can be reached by train from North Korea. The two states share a border that is around 17 kilometers long.
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov had until recently denied a meeting in Vladivostok. Such contacts were not planned at the forum, he said on Monday. He did not comment on Kim’s visit to Russia.
A meeting between the two has been reported for a long time. The US government has warned several times in recent months that Russia could buy weapons systems from North Korea to continue its war of aggression against Ukraine.
North Korea could supply artillery ammunition and rockets
In fact, the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine is much longer, more costly and more costly for Moscow than the Kremlin originally planned. Although the arms industry is working at peak activity, its own production cannot compensate for the losses in weapons and ammunition. That is why Russia is said to have already purchased Shahed drones from Iran.
North Korea, in turn, has been considered a possible supplier for artillery ammunition and rockets for some time. Pyongyang specializes in modernizing Soviet weapons systems.
On the other hand, Russia could help its neighbor with its nuclear program and on economic issues. Another field would be humanitarian aid.
>> Read here: All developments in the Ukraine war can be found here in the live blog
The visit of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to Pyongyang in August to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War was seen as a precursor to Kim’s visit. The North Korean leadership celebrates the armistice concluded in 1953 as its own victory. During Shoigu’s visit, agreements had already been made on greater military cooperation.
Kim has only been to Russia once, four years ago. In April 2019 he visited Vladivostok, also with his armored train. The talks with Putin at the time were about the North Korean nuclear program and strengthening economic cooperation. However, there were no concrete results.
More: Baerbock visits Kiev and assures support