By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
PYONGYANG (Worthy News) – Eager to receive more military aid, Russian President Vladimir Putin began visiting North Korea after his plane touched down in the capital, Pyongyang, in the middle of the night.
Autocratic North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was on the tarmac to welcome Putin at around 03:00 local time, accompanied by crowds waving the Communist nation’s and Russian flags.
During their nine-hour-long schedule on Wednesday, both leaders were to focus on Moscow’s request for ammunition over two years after it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Washington and Seoul accused North Korea of supplying Russia with artillery and other equipment, likely in exchange for food and military aid.
Russia and North Korea deny an arms deal but vowed to strengthen military ties last year.
The two leaders last met in September in far eastern Russia, but this is Putin’s first visit to Pyongyang since 2000.
NEEDED FOOD
Since last year, North Korea has shipped 7,000 containers filled with munitions and other military equipment to Russia, South Korea’s defense minister Shin Won-sik has said.
In exchange, Pyongyang gets desperately needed food and economic assistance from Moscow, according to South Korean officials.
North Korea’s state news agency KCNA said that after Putin landed in Pyongyang, the two leaders “exchanged their pent-up inmost thoughts” and discussed deepening ties.
It described the partnership between the increasingly isolated pair as an “engine for accelerating the building of a new multi-polar world” – mirroring language used by Putin.
Yet, like Russia, North Korea remains isolated with Western sanctions over its nuclear weapons program and concerns over its poor human rights record.
Thousands of Christians are believed to be held for their faith or political opinions, with many staying in prison camps, several advocacy groups say.
After North Korea, Putin will visit Vietnam, a long-time ally. Both countries were expected to discuss issues such as trade.
Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest Stories from Worthy News
Israel’s military said a strike on a suburb of Lebanon’s capital killed Ibrahim Aqil, a prominent Hezbollah leader.
A summit was underway in New York this weekend that critics say will give the United Nations even more powers to create a new world order through a Pact for the Future.
Well-informed investigators say over 70,000 Russian soldiers have been confirmed killed in Ukraine since the Kremlin launched its invasion more than two and a half years ago. The news came amid reports of more fighting and attempts by the Ukrainian president to meet his U.S. counterpart and the presidential candidates.
Indian Christian leaders are skeptical about the federal government’s “road map” for peace in India’s conflict-torn Manipur state, where scores of Christians were killed and hundreds of churches and other properties were destroyed.
A massive barrage of Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon just after the terrorist group’s leader declared that two days of intense hybrid bombings, including the detonation of pagers and walkie-talkies targeting Hezbollah forces, amounted to a declaration of war.