North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un is planning on traveling to Russia this month to meet with President Vladimir Putin to discuss the possibility of supplying Russia with more weapons for its ongoing war in Ukraine and other military cooperation, according to a new report.
Citing American and allied officials, the New York Times reported that Kim would travel from the North Korean capital of Pyongyang to Vladivostok to meet with Putin, where both men are scheduled to be at Far Eastern Federal University to attend the Eastern Economic Forum from Sept. 10 to 13. Kim first met with Putin in Russia in 2019.
According to the outlet, Putin wants Kim to send Russia artillery shells and anti-tank missiles, and Kim is seeking advanced technology for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines from Russia, as well as food aid.
White House spokesman John Kirby said on Wednesday that Putin and Kim had exchanged letters discussing the possible deal and that high-level talks on cooperation between the two countries were “actively advancing.”
Kirby has also said North Korea had sent weapons to Russia through the Middle East and North Africa but according to US officials, few if any North Korean weapons have been used in the war with Ukraine.
The outlet reported that National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement that Russian defense minister Sergei K. Shoigu traveled to North Korea to try and convince Pyongyang to sell the weapons to Russia. “As we have warned publicly, arms negotiations between Russia and the DPRK are actively advancing. We have information that Kim Jong Un expects these discussions to continue, possibly to include high-level diplomatic engagement in Russia.”
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, US officials have released declassified intelligence to try to stop North Korea, as well as other countries such as China, from supplying weapons to Russia.
Last month, approximately 20 North Korean officials traveled by train from Pyongyang to Vladivostok, and then flew to Moscow, on what was believed to be a planning expedition for the Kim/Putin summit, the outlet reported.
According to the KCNA, Kim sent Putin a message in June, on Russia’s national day, in which he pledged to “hold hands” with the Russian leader and promised that the Russian people would have North Korea’s “full support and solidarity” for their “all-out struggle” against Ukraine.
