North Korean (North Korea) leader Kim Jong Un plans to travel to Russia this month to meet President Vladimir Putin. The meeting will reportedly discuss the potential of supplying Moscow with weapons for the war in Ukraine, with Russia seeking closer military ties with Pyongyang.
As reported ReutersTuesday (5/9/2023), Kim Jong Un’s planned visit was revealed by leading United States (US) media, New York Times (NYT), in its report on Monday (4/9) local time citing sources from the US and its allies.
The NYT said in its report that Kim Jong Un would travel from Pyongyang, presumably by armored train, to Vladivostok on Russia’s Pacific Coast, where he would meet Putin in person. It will be a rare overseas visit by Kim Jong Un.
While in Vladivostok, a port city not far from North Korea, according to the NYT report, Kim Jong Un and Putin will discuss Pyongyang’s supply of artillery shells and anti-tank missiles to Moscow in return for advanced technology provided by Russia for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines.
Plans for Kim Jong Un’s visit were unveiled after the Kremlin stated last week that it intends to deepen “respectful relations” with North Korea — a close Cold War-era ally and one of a handful of nations backing Moscow’s annexation of parts of Ukraine.
The NYT report said Kim Jong Un might also visit Moscow, apart from Vladivostok. However, according to the NYT, this information cannot be confirmed as true.
Kim Jong Un’s father, the late Kim Jong Il, who was known to avoid planes, was known to only travel by armored train. He last visited Russia in 2011, a few months before he died.
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