Meeting with Putin soon
Kim Jong Un reaches Russia
September 12, 2023, 7:08 a.m
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North Korean leader Kim is already in Russia. He wants to meet with President Putin here in the coming days. According to the Kremlin, this is primarily about “sensitive” issues.
According to Moscow, the train with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on board has reached Russia, where a meeting between Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin is planned. As the Russian state news agency Ria Novosti reported, the train traveled through the Russian region that borders North Korea. Pictures from Ria Novosti show dark green wagons being pulled by a Russian Railways locomotive. The South Korean Defense Ministry had previously announced that Kim’s train had reached Russia.
The meeting with Putin is scheduled to take place in the Russian Far East in the coming days – but so far Moscow has not specified the date or exact location of the meeting. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian media that the two heads of state would primarily discuss “sensitive” issues without paying attention to “warnings” from the US. There will be meetings between the two delegations and individual discussions before an official dinner.
After days of speculation abroad, Moscow and Pyongyang only confirmed Kim’s “official visit” to Russia on Monday. The USA suspects that it will primarily be about arms deals between Russia and the strictly isolated North Korea. Although there was no official information yet, there was speculation that the two could meet at an economic forum in Russia’s Far Eastern metropolis of Vladivostok. The forum lasts until Wednesday.
North Korea’s state media reports that Kim boarded his train in Pyongyang on Sunday afternoon, accompanied by representatives of the ruling Workers’ Party, the government and the military. Pictures showed that he was accompanied by Foreign Minister Choe Sun Hui, among others.