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Putin, making his first trip to North Korea in 24 years, said in comments that appeared on state media hours before he landed that he appreciated the country’s firm support for his military action in Ukraine, a full-scale invasion that began in 2022.
He said the countries would continue to “resolutely oppose” what he described as Western ambitions “to hinder the establishment of a multipolar world order based on justice, mutual respect for sovereignty, consideration of the interests of others”.
In the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, the streets were decorated with portraits of Putin and Russian flags. A banner on a building reads: “We warmly welcome the President of the Russian Federation.”
Putin also said in his published remarks that Russia and North Korea would develop trade and payment systems “that are not controlled by the West” and jointly oppose sanctions against the countries, which he described as “illegal, unilateral restrictions.”
North Korea is under heavy UN Security Council economic sanctions over its nuclear weapons and missile programs, while Russia is also battling sanctions from the United States and its Western partners over its aggression in Ukraine.
Putin said the countries will expand their cooperation in the fields of tourism, culture and education.
Before heading to North Korea, Putin traveled to Yakutsk, a city in eastern Russia, where he met with regional governor Aisen Nikolaev and received briefings on defense-related technology and projects. He also met with young specialists working in the Far East of Russia.
Putin was accompanied by several high-ranking officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Denis Mantrurov, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, according to his foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov. He said a number of documents would be signed during the visit, possibly including a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement.
US and South Korean officials say military, economic and other exchanges between North Korea and Russia have increased sharply since Kim met Putin in September in the Russian Far East, their first meeting since 2019.
US and South Korean officials have accused the North of providing Russia with artillery, missiles and other military equipment for use in Ukraine, possibly in exchange for key military technology and aid. Both Pyongyang and Moscow deny allegations of arms transfers from North Korea, which would violate multiple UN Security Council sanctions that Russia previously approved.
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Along with China, Russia has provided political cover for Kim’s continued efforts to develop his nuclear arsenal, repeatedly blocking US-led efforts to impose new UN sanctions on the North over its weapons tests.
In March, a Russian veto at the UN ended monitoring of UN sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear program, prompting Western accusations that Moscow is seeking to evade scrutiny as it buys weapons from Pyongyang for use in Ukraine. US and South Korean officials said they were discussing options for a new mechanism to monitor the North.
Earlier this year, Putin sent Kim a high-end Aurus Senat limousine, which he had shown the North Korean leader when they met in September. Observers said the shipment violated a UN resolution banning the delivery of luxury items to North Korea.
John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said the deepening relationship between Moscow and Pyongyang was worrisome, “not only because of the impact it will have on the Ukrainian people, because we know that North Korean ballistic missiles are still being used to hit Ukrainian targets, but because there might be some reciprocity here that would affect the security of the Korean Peninsula.”
“Right now we haven’t seen the parameters of it all, we certainly haven’t seen it come to fruition.” But we will certainly be watching it very, very carefully,” he said.
Lim Soosuk, a spokesman for South Korea’s foreign ministry, said Seoul had emphasized to Moscow that any cooperation between Russia and North Korea should not “continue in a direction that violates UN Security Council resolutions or undermines peace and stability in the region”.
South Korea’s military said soldiers fired warning shots to repel North Korean soldiers who temporarily crossed the land border on Tuesday, apparently by mistake, for the second time this month.
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Putin has been constantly seeking to restore ties with Pyongyang as part of efforts to restore the influence of his country and its Soviet-era alliances. Moscow’s ties with North Korea have weakened since the collapse of the USSR in 1991. Kim Jong Un met Putin for the first time in 2019 in Russia’s eastern port of Vladivostok.
After North Korea, the Kremlin said Putin would also visit Vietnam for talks expected to focus on trade. The United States, which has spent years strengthening ties and boosting trade with Vietnam, criticized Putin’s planned visit.
“As Russia continues to seek international support to sustain its illegal and brutal war against Ukraine, we reiterate that no country should give Putin a platform to promote his aggressive war and otherwise allow him to normalize atrocities si,” a spokesman for the US Embassy in Vietnam said in a statement.
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