2023-09-16 19:41:13
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met this Saturday with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in Vladivostok, in the Russian Far East, where he inspected state-of-the-art weapons including a plane with hypersonic missiles.
Kim’s unusual trip, his first trip abroad since the Covid-19 pandemic, began on Tuesday and included a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, causing concern in Western countries that fear an arms deal between the two.
Kim was greeted by Shoigu and escorted by an honor guard upon his arrival in Vladivostok, a large port city on the edge of Russia, near the borders with China and North Korea.
Shoigu and Kim, smiling, examined Russian nuclear bombers and other state-of-the-art military aircraft, according to a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry.
At the Knevichi air base, the minister presented a MiG-31 fighter with its Kinzhal hypersonic missile system, the Russian press agency TASS reported.
Kim’s tour of the Russian Far East has been focused on military and aerospace issues, with a visit to a cosmodrome and a fighter aircraft factory, and military references such as an exchange of rifles with Putin.
Analysts consider that Russia may be interested in obtain North Korean ammunition for its offensive in Ukraine, while the Asian country wants Russian help to develop its missile program.
Kim Jong Un and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu this Saturday at a military base in eastern Russia. Photo: AP
Russia denies agreements
The Kremlin denied on Friday that an agreement had been signed, but Putin raised, after meeting Kim at the Vostochny cosmodrome two days earlier, the prospect of greater cooperation with Pyongyang and said there were “possibilities” in their military relations.
At the Knevichi base, the North Korean leader also examined Tu-160, Tu-95MS and Tu-22M3 bombers this Saturday.
“These ships are the air component of Russia’s strategic nuclear forces,” the Defense Ministry stressed in a statement.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un with the Russian Defense Minister, this Saturday at the Knevichi airfield, near Vladivostok, in Russia. Photo: AFP
Kim and the Russian minister then boarded the frigate “Marshal Shaposhnikov”, where the commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Nikolai Evmenov, explained to them the characteristics of the ship and its capabilities. anti-submarine weapons.
Later this Saturday, Kim visited the Mariinsky Theater in Vladivostok with the Russian regional governor, where he arrived in a black car, surrounded by a large security device, before entering the VIP box, according to images published on Telegram by the Russian authorities. .
According to the itinerary detailed by Putin on Wednesday, Kim will also visit the facilities of the Russian Academy of Sciences and a university in Vladivostok, which has historically received North Korean students.
Isolated, Vladimir Putin seeks alliances
Kim’s visit to Russia comes as Putin tries to foster alliances with other leaders isolated by Western powers.
Both countries, which have been historical allies since the Soviet era, are subject to strong international sanctions, due to the conflict in Ukraine in the case of Russia, and in that of North Korea due to its nuclear development program and missile tests.
The exchange of rifles between Kim and Putin at Wednesday’s summit fueled speculation about a possible arms sales deal, despite warnings from the United States and its allies.
The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, received the leader of North Korea this Wednesday. Photo: AP
After the meeting with Kim, Putin announced that he accepted an invitation to visit North Korea soon. The Russian government also mentioned the possibility of helping Pyongyang to manufacture satellites, a perspective that alarmed the United States.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said cooperation between the two countries “is quite problematic and may violate multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.”
He also stressed that Pyongyang can use satellite technology to develop its ballistic missiles.
In recent months, the isolated communist regime suffered two failures in its attempt to put a military espionage satellite into orbit.
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