The reconciliation would be well underway. North Korean leader Kim-Jong Un intends to visit Russia to discuss with President Vladimir Putin arms sales from Pyongyang to Moscow for its war in Ukraine, the House said on Monday (September 4th). -White.
“As we have said before, negotiations on the supply of arms between Russia and North Korea are actively progressing,” confirmed Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council of the White House. And “we know that Kim-Jong Un wants these negotiations to continue, including a diplomatic exchange at the highest level in Russia,” she added in an email to the press. Will this meeting actually take place? The Express takes stock.
Arms deliveries
As of Wednesday, the chief spokesman of the National Security Council, John Kirby, had expressed alarm at the rapid progress of these negotiations on future arms deliveries from Pyongyang to Moscow and had called on the communist regime to “stop “these talks.
John Kirby had revealed that “these potential agreements would see Russia receive significant quantities” of armaments, in particular ammunition for artillery, as well as raw materials for its defense industry. These weapons would be “used against Ukraine”, added the American ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
An official at the South Korean Unification Ministry also told AFP that several elements “indicate” that discussions between Pyongyang and Moscow on future arms deliveries are progressing. “Any form of cooperation between North Korea and its neighboring countries must be conducted in a way that does not undermine international norms and peace,” he added.
When will the meeting take place?
According to New York Times, Kim-Jong Un is expected to travel to Vladivostok, on Russia’s east coast, on an armored train later this month to meet with Vladimir Putin. In particular, they could meet on the campus of the Federal University of the Far East in Vladivostok in order to attend the Eastern Economic Forum, which is due to take place from September 10 to 13, according to interviewed intelligence officials. by the daily.
The newspaper specifies that the Russian president would like to obtain artillery shells and anti-tank missiles from North Korea. The North Korean leader is said to be seeking to acquire advanced technologies for satellites and submarines, as well as food aid.
Very rare trips
The North Korean leader’s trips abroad are rare. Besides his trips to Singapore and Vietnam in 2018 and 2019 for summits with then-US President Donald Trump, Kim-Jong Un made four visits to China. He also already met Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok in 2019.
Weapons have already been delivered
Washington said last week that North Korea had supplied infantry rockets and missiles to Russia in 2022 for use by the private paramilitary group Wagner.
The White House on Monday again denounced the late July visit of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to North Korea, where he attended a military parade alongside Kim Jong-un, in order “to try to convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition to Russia”.
Last month, Washington sanctioned three entities accused of seeking to facilitate arms sales between North Korea and Russia. They were linked to a Slovak national already sanctioned by the US Treasury in March for allowing arms sales between Pyongyang and Moscow, according to the Treasury Department.
How did the international community react?
Last week, the United States, Britain, South Korea and Japan said any deal to increase cooperation between Russia and North Korea would violate United Nations Security Council resolutions banning arms sales to Pyongyang, resolutions that Moscow itself approved. They said that following Sergei Shoigu’s visit to Pyongyang, another group of Russian officials visited North Korea for follow-up talks.
According to Cho Han-bum, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, international sanctions will not prevent any exchange of arms between Pyongyang and Moscow. Russia and North Korea are “not worried” about sanctions because both countries are already subject to them, he said, adding that military cooperation between the two countries seems “inevitable”.