North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Wednesday at a remote space launch site in Russia's Far East, ahead of planned arms talks and just hours after North Korea launched two ballistic missiles into waters off the Korean Peninsula.
The face-to-face meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome was seen as an important development, bringing together two leaders increasingly isolated on the world stage and in the context of Russia's long and faltering war against Russia. against Ukraine as well as crippling sanctions from the United Nations.
A video released by the Kremlin on Wednesday showed the two leaders shaking hands while footage showed Russian and North Korean flags flying outside the building.
“Thank you for inviting us and hosting us while your work is busy,” Mr. Kim told Putin, who requested it after his trip.
Inside the Vostochny Cosmodrome, the two leaders can be seen touring the space center. A reporter for state media Russia 1 said Kim asked “a lot of very detailed questions” about how the spaceport works and the rockets launched from the center.
North Korean state media reported that Kim arrived in Russia on Tuesday on a heavily armored private train, accompanied by party leaders, including a senior military official in charge of missile programs. the country's ballistic missiles, according to photos shared by North Korean state media.
During a stop Tuesday in the border town of Khasan, where Kim was welcomed by Russian officials, the North Korean leader said his trip to Russia was a "clear demonstration" of North Korea's “prioritize the strategic importance” of Moscow-Pyongyang relations. according to state media report.