The North Korean leader Kim Jong Un He arrived in Russia this Tuesday, on an armored train, for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin amid speculation of an arms agreement between both countries.
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Kim left Pyongyang on Sunday in his private green and gold train, accompanied by an important delegation of military officers, according to images released by the official press of his leader’s first trip abroad since 2019.
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The Russian state agency Ria Novosti confirmed that The convoy crossed the border this Tuesday through Primorye Krai, an administrative division in the Far East region, where the meeting is to take place..
After a week of speculation, Pyongyang and Moscow confirmed the meeting on Monday, but did not detail the exact date or location.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said the summit would be held in the coming days and would deal with “sensitive” issues for the two neighboring countries.
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External analysts estimate that The meeting will probably be in Vladivostok, where Putin is attending an economic forum, and will culminate in an arms sales agreement despite warnings from the United States..
Putin was not asked any questions about the North Korean leader’s visit, despite a lengthy session with the press.
Our countries cooperate on sensitive issues that should not be the subject of public dissemination and announcements.
The Russian president simply said that he will soon visit the Vostotchny cosmodrome, in the Russian Far East, 1,000 km from Vladivostok, but refused to say what he planned to do there.
“When it arrives they will know,” he said.
According to experts, Moscow wants North Korean artillery shells and anti-tank missiles for its military operation in Ukraine, in exchange for advanced technology for satellites and nuclear submarines and food aid for Pyongyang.
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“Our countries cooperate on sensitive issues that should not be the subject of public broadcast and announcements,” Peskov told Russian media.
“What is important for us is the interest of our two countries and not warnings from Washington,” he added.
train travel
The North Korean leader, not very familiar with traveling abroad, had not left his country since the Covid-19 pandemic began.
In Pyongyang he received a “warm farewell,” the state news agency KCNA said, with numerous senior officials gathered at the station, an honor guard and a red carpet laid out at the entrance to the armored train.
The train has already crossed into Russia and is in the Russian coastal region, bordering North Korea, according to the least Russians. Images from Ria Novosti show the convoy pulled by a Russian locomotive.
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According to the South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo, the convoy, heavily armored, travels at a speed of about 60 km/h and takes 20 hours to travel the 1,200 kilometers between Pyongyang and Vladivostok.
Kim has repeatedly shown his preference for trains for international travel. In 2019, she made a 60-hour round trip to Hanoi for a summit with then-U.S. President Donald Trump.
On this occasion, the North Korean leader is accompanied by important military leaders, such as the Marshal of the Korean People’s Army, Pak Jong Chon, or the director of the Department of Munitions Industry, Jo Chun Ryong, analysts said.
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This indicates that The summit “will probably be very focused on possible military cooperation between Russia and North Korea”the president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, Yang Moo-jin, told AFP.
In July, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang and attended a parade and an exhibition of military equipment.
‘Begging for help’
Russia was a crucial backer of the isolated country for decades and its ties date back to the founding of North Korea 75 years ago.
Kim has strongly supported Moscow’s military intervention in Ukraine. According to the United States, he has even supplied rockets and missiles to Russia, something both countries deny.
For Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, it is not surprising that Kim’s first destination after the pandemic is Russia.
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“North Korea has the ammunition Putin needs for his illegal war in Ukraine, while Moscow has submarine, ballistic and satellite technology that can help Pyongyang overcome the engineering challenges it suffers under economic sanctions,” he said.
The United States warned that Pyongyang would pay “a price” if it supplies weapons to Russia and portrayed the meeting as a desperate move by Putin.
“I would describe it as if he were pleading for help,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
For France, this trip is a “sign” of Russia’s isolation.
AFP
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