Seoul. Russian President Vladimir Putin will arrive in North Korea on Tuesday for a two-day visit. This will be Putin’s first visit to North Korea in 24 years. This announcement has been made by both the countries. It is expected that Putin will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The focus of the talks between the two leaders will be on increasing military cooperation. Both countries are strengthening their alliance despite their various differences with the US.
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Putin would visit the state on Tuesday and Wednesday at Kim’s invitation. North Korean state media did not immediately elaborate. Russia has also confirmed this visit.
The visit comes amid growing international concerns over an arms deal under which Pyongyang provides Moscow with vital weapons in exchange for financial aid and technology transfers that are vital to fuel Putin’s war in Ukraine. However, economic aid and technology transfers to North Korea would increase the threat posed by Kim’s nuclear weapons and missile programs.
Military, economic and other cooperation between North Korea and Russia has increased rapidly since Kim traveled to Russia’s Far East for a meeting with Putin last September. This meeting between the two leaders was their first meeting after 2019.
US and South Korean officials have accused North Korea of supplying ammunition, missiles and other military equipment to Russia to advance its fight in Ukraine. However, both Pyongyang and Moscow have denied North Korea’s allegations of an arms embargo, which would violate UN Security Council resolutions.
Any arms trade with North Korea would violate several UN Security Council resolutions, which Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, has previously endorsed. Andrey Lenkov, a North Korea expert at Kookmin University in Seoul, said Pyongyang is expected to receive high-end weapons from Moscow in exchange for providing ammunition and short-range ballistic missiles.
Lenkov said that although Russia is reluctant to share its advanced military technology with North Korea, it is eager to receive ammunition from Pyongyang. Lenkov said, ‘In war there is never enough ammunition, rather there is too much demand for it.’ Moscow said it “highly appreciates” Pyongyang’s support for Russia’s military action in Ukraine and noted their “close and fruitful cooperation” at the United Nations and other international organizations.
Tags: Kim Jong Un, North Korea, Russia, Vladimir Putin
First published: June 17, 2024, 20:44 IST