On September 16th, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, visited Vladivostok, where he had a meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and conducted an inspection of a hypersonic aircraft missile system. This visit took place amid suspicions of Moscow’s interest in acquiring North Korean arms to continue fighting in Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Vladivostok on Saturday, where he met Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and inspected a hypersonic aircraft missile system before boarding a warship.
Kim’s first official visit abroad since the COVID-19 pandemic has fanned Western fears that Moscow and Pyongyang will defy sanctions and strike an arms deal.
Moscow is believed to be interested in buying North Korean ammunition to continue fighting in Ukraine, while Pyongyang wants Russia’s help to develop its missile program.
The Kremlin has said no agreement has or will be inked.
Kim’s extended tour of Russia’s far eastern region, which began Tuesday, has leaned heavily martial, including his military-dominated entourage, symbolic exchange of rifles with President Vladimir Putin, and tour of a fighter jet factory in engineering hub Komsomolsk-on-Amur.
After meeting Kim on Wednesday at the Vostochny cosmodrome, roughly 8,000 kilometers (4,970.97 miles) from Moscow, Putin discussed the prospect of greater cooperation with North Korea. They said there were “possibilities” for military ties.
At the Knevichi airfield, Shoigu showed Kim “the Kinzhal missile system on the MiG-31I missile carrier,” TASS said, adding that its “flight and technical capabilities” were outlined to Kim by a top military official.
Kim and Shoigu then boarded frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, where the “Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Nikolay Evmenov, spoke about the characteristics of the ship and anti-submarine weapons, four-tube torpedo tubes and RBU-6000 rocket launchers,” TASS said.
While meeting Kim, Putin accepted an invitation to visit North Korea, according to the Kremlin, and he reportedly offered to send a North Korean to space, which would be a first.
Moscow also mentioned the possibility of helping North Korea to manufacture satellites, a prospect that has alarmed Washington.
Miroslava Salazar, with AFP
