North Korea’s Kim travels to Russia for talks with Putin

SEOUL/MOSCOW, Sept 11 (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un left for Russia aboard a special train, a South Korean source said, as Pyongyang and Moscow on Monday confirmed a summit with President Vladimir Putin amid of Russia’s growing isolation due to the war in Ukraine.

Kim would visit Russia in the coming days at Putin’s invitation, the Kremlin said, while North Korea’s state news agency KCNA said the two would “meet and talk”, without giving further details.

U.S. officials have said the two would discuss possible arms deals to help Russia’s war in Ukraine and provide North Korea with a much-needed economic and political lifeline.

Washington and its allies have been expressing concern about recent signs closer military cooperation between Russia and the nuclear-armed North. It will be Kim’s second summit with Putin, after the two met in 2019.

Despite denials from both Pyongyang and Moscow, the United States has said the talks are actively moving forward for North Korea to supply weapons to Russia, which has spent huge weapons reserves in more than 18 months of war.

The North Korean leader left on his train late on Sunday, a senior South Korean government official told Reuters.

The special train would take Kim to North Korea’s northeastern border with Russia and the summit could take place as soon as Tuesday, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing intelligence concerns, adding that details could change depending on the situation there. .

Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang immediately confirmed an exact timetable for the visit.

North Korea is one of the few countries that has openly supported Russia since the invasion of Ukraine last year, and Putin promised last week to “expand bilateral ties in all aspects in a planned way by joining forces.”

Kim last trip abroad In 2019 he was also in Vladivostok for his first summit with Putin after the failure of North Korea’s nuclear disarmament talks with former US President Donald Trump.

SECRET AND SECURITY

Japanese media reported that security was being tightened and renovations were underway at the main train station in the Russian border town of Khasan, where Kim is expected to enter Russia.

Kim does not travel abroad often, and when he does, it is often shrouded in secrecy and security. He travels for a special train with its characteristic olive green carriages that are said to be armored and equipped with communications systems and a personal suite for Kim to work and converse with his assistants.

A summit between Kim and Putin would likely focus on military cooperation and possibly an arms supply deal, U.S. and South Korean officials and analysts have said.

North Korea is believed to have a large stockpile of artillery ammunition that would be compatible with Russian weapons and could help supplement supplies being rapidly used on the Ukrainian front.

The United States has said it would be a “big mistake” for North Korea to supply Russia with weapons for use in Ukraine and warned Pyongyang would “pay a price.”

The deepening relationship between Kim and Putin indicates a greater global divide over the war, said Ramón Pacheco Pardo, Korea’s chair at the Brussels School of Governance.

“North Korea’s support will allow Putin to fight his war for longer, which is bad news for Europe,” he said. “It’s further proof that much of the world does not support Ukraine the way the United States and Europe do, and some countries like North Korea will openly support Russia without fear of real consequences.”

In VladivostokThere was a larger-than-usual police presence on the streets, but no North Korean flags had been raised, unlike Kim’s previous trip, when the city was adorned with the red five-pointed stars that adorn the North’s flag.

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