Kim touts 'unwavering' ties with Moscow ahead of expected Putin visit

Photo: KCNA/KNS/Agence France-Presse North Korean leader Kim Jong-un

Agence France-Presse in Seoul

Published yesterday at 9:29 a.m. Updated yesterday at 10:11 p.m.

• Asia

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday praised the “unwavering” ties between Pyongyang and Moscow, ahead of an expected visit by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to North Korea against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.

According to the South Korean agency Yonhap, Mr. Putin could visit North Korea “as early as next week”, nine months after Mr. Kim made a rare visit to the neighboring country to meet the Russian president.

The two nations have developed “unfailing bonds of brothers in arms,” underlined the North Korean head of state in a message sent Wednesday to Mr. Putin on the occasion of the Russian National Day.

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“Our people express their full support and solidarity to the sacred cause of “Russian army and people, who are moving resolutely towards justice and truth”, he added in this press release relayed by the official North Korean news agency KCNA.

The West accuses Pyongyang of delivering weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine in exchange for help in developing its satellite program.

No agreement had been reached. However, it was officially signed during Mr. Kim's visit to the Russian Far East in September, and Pyongyang called the allegations “absurd.”

But the Pentagon affirmed at the end of May that analyzes of debris from ballistic missiles used by Russia in Ukraine confirmed their North Korean origin.

In mid-May, the Kremlin confirmed that a visit by Mr. Putin to South Korea was “in preparation” and would be announced “in due course.”

According to Yonhap, satellite images show the installation in the heart of Pyongyang of a “large structure” likely to be used for the reception of the Russian leader. Mr. Putin would then be likely to visit Vietnam, according to this source.

According to experts, the two countries could agree during this visit to further strengthen their exchanges .

M. Putin “needs help in his war effort, and Kim wants to develop his military program,” notes Soo Kim, former analyst at the American intelligence agency CIA, to AFP.