MOSCOW, Sept 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could be seen shaking hands at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East in video footage released by the Kremlin on Wednesday.
The two will hold talks on “trade ties” and “international affairs” at the spaceport, where Kim arrived by train, Russian news agencies reported.
Video posted by Russian state media showed the two leaders smiling and shaking hands as Kim arrived at the Vostochny spaceport in Russia’s far eastern Amur region, a day after he arrived in the country from North Korea.
The two men met at the entrance to a launch vehicle assembly building, where Putin said he was “happy to see” Kim and Kim thanked Putin for inviting him to visit Russia “despite being busy.” After inspecting the spaceport, they began talks between their delegations that could also include a one-on-one meeting.
Asked by reporters if he and Kim would discuss arms sales, Putin said they would address “all the questions” and that “there is time,” state news agency RIA Novosti reported. Putin also suggested that Russia could help North Korea develop satellites, noting that Kim was “showing great interest in rocket technology.”
During his tour of the spaceport, the North Korean leader appeared to ask detailed questions about the technology in use there.
Kim’s private train arrived in Khasan, a Russian station just across North Korea’s northeastern border, early on Tuesday local time, North Korean state media reported on Wednesday. There he was greeted on a red carpet by Natural Resources Minister Alexander Kozlov and regional Gov. Oleg Kozhemyako, as well as an honor guard and military band, North Korean state news agency KCNA said.
Kim said his visit to Russia, which is his first since 2019 as well as his first trip outside North Korea after three years of pandemic isolation, showed that his government is “prioritizing the strategic importance” of North Korea-Russia relations.
The two U.S. adversaries have been drawing closer together as their leaders face deepening diplomatic isolation — Putin over his 18-month war in Ukraine and Kim over his continued development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs in violation of international sanctions.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov had said the two leaders would mainly discuss bilateral relations, including trade and economic ties and cultural exchanges.
The Putin-Kim meeting came as North Korea continued its recent barrage of weapons tests, firing two short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea earlier Wednesday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. — NNN-AGENCIES
