Putin Responds Positively to Visit North Korea Following Kim’s Invite

Kim Jong Un, the North Korean Leader visiting Russia, has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit North Korea. The Korean Central News Agency reported that Putin readily accepted the invitation.

On the 14th, the Korean Central News Agency reported, “Kim extended a cordial invitation to President Putin to visit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) at a convenient time after the summit meeting between North Korea and Russia, followed by a banquet.”

It continued, “President Putin gladly accepted the invitation, reaffirming his determination to continue the history and tradition of friendship between North Korea and Russia.”

However, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin Press Secretary, stated to reporters immediately after the summit meeting that President Putin currently has no plans to visit North Korea. Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, has agreed to meet with North Korean Foreign Minister Choi Sun Hee in the near future and explained that they could hold a meeting in North Korea as early as next month.

This summit meeting between North Korea and Russia occurred after a gap of 4 years and 5 months and was held at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Amur Oblast, Russia. This place is known as an advanced facility constructed by Russia in 2012, which used to be a nuclear missile base during the former Soviet era. Since the successful rocket launch in 2016, Russia has conducted most of its lunar exploration projects here.

Through this summit meeting, the two leaders confirmed the enhancement of cooperation in various fields, including North Korea’s satellite program and arms trade.

The news agency evaluated the outcome of the meeting as follows: “In the joint front to break down the military threats, provocations, coercion, and smuggling by imperialists who seek to invade and plunder the autonomy, progress, and peaceful life of humanity, the two countries have agreed to strengthen their strategic and tactical cooperation more closely and firmly support each other.”

It further stated, “They discussed important issues and cooperation matters that arise in safeguarding their countries’ sovereignty and development interests, as well as the peace and security of the region and the world, and upholding international justice, with sincerity. They reached a satisfactory agreement and shared views.”

By. Jeong Seung Pil (pilihp@inews24.com)