Vladimir Putin arrived in North Korea overnight. After a long delay, the Russian president was welcomed in a small group by Kim Jong-un. What was to be a two-day state visit will probably become an express visit to the hermit regime before heading to Vietnam where Vladimir Putin is also expected.
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A Russian choir celebrating the friendship between the two countries for the arrival of the Russian president in North Korea. A late arrival with a landing at three in the morning local time, Vladimir Putin knows how to be desired. While the North Korean capital had dressed up to welcome himadorned with flags and portraits of the Russian president, the latter is ultimately not expected to stay long in Pyongyang.
According to some analysts, this voluntary delay by Vladimir Putin shows a form of contempt towards Kim Jong-un, underlines our correspondent in Seoul, Celio Fioretti. If the Russian president has a habit of arriving late, this could indicate that it is North Korea that needs him, and not the other way around.
Read alsoVladimir Putin in Pyongyang: first visit by a Russian head of state in almost a quarter of a century
After a large ceremony on the main square of the capital Pyongyang, the Russian head of state and the North Korean number one then “ started negotiations within the framework of their delegations », at the official Kumsusan residence, said the RIA Novosti agency.
A treatise on “ strategic partnership »
For the moment, no details on the possible agreements that the two heads of state could sign, in particular a military agreement whose broad outlines given by the Russian presidency remain very vague. According to a document published Tuesday by the Kremlin, Russia plans to sign a “strategic partnership” treaty with North Korea. Moscow and Pyongyang have been allies since the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), but have become closer since the Russian military operation launched in Ukraine in 2022.
The West accuses Kim Jong Un of supplying weapons to his historic ally, Russia, for use in Ukraine, in violation of sanctions imposed on the two countries, allegations that Moscow and Pyongyang have officially denied. Last March, Seoul accuses Pyongyang of supplying some 7,000 containers of munitions to Russia.
Read alsoUkraine investigates North Korean ballistic missiles used by Russia
🇷🇺🇰🇵 Russia’s President Vladimir Putin arrives in #DPRK on a friendly state visit at the invitation of Kim Jong-un, Chairman of State Affairs of the DPRK.
🤝 Kim Jong-un personally greeted Vladimir Putin at the Pyongyang airport. pic.twitter.com/h3YUNXKfKQ
— MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) June 18, 2024
In the South, Seoul organized a meeting with the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Faced with the rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang, South Korea is seeking to make Beijing a mediating power in the region.