Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov has arrived in North Korea, Russia’s defence ministry said on Sunday, the second senior Russian official to visit Pyongyang in recent days.
– Earlier, North Korean state media KCNA reported that Russia’s State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin had also arrived in Pyongyang and will attend the opening ceremony of a newly built memorial for North Korean troops who died fighting in the Ukraine war.
– Belousov is due to hold talks with North Korea’s top leadership and senior military officials and will take part in “ceremonial and commemorative events,” the Russian defence ministry said.
– Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to mark the opening of the memorial, the Kremlin said.
– Putin thanked Kim and North Korean soldiers for helping Russia repel a major Ukrainian incursion into its western Kursk region and said he was confident the two countries would continue to strengthen their strategic partnership.
– Kim and Putin met in June 2024 and signed a comprehensive strategic treaty that includes a mutual defence pact. The two countries have rapidly developed diplomatic and military ties since 2023.