Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit North Korea Tuesday in the latest sign of warming ties between the two U.S. adversaries.
Both the Kremlin and North Korea’s state-control KCNA news agency confirmed the long-anticipated visit, which comes as Pyongyang has been supplying crucial ammunition and other materials for Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Russia in turn has provided food aid to the North’s struggling economy and is widely reported to be ready to supply sophisticated new military technology for the North Korean army. The aid could come despite numerous sanctions placed on Pyongyang by the U.N. Security Council, on which Russia is a veto-wielding permanent member.
For Mr. Putin, it will be his first trip to the isolated North Korean capital since July 2000, just after he first took power. He met at the time with Kim Jong-il, Mr. Kim’s father.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made a rare trip abroad last fall to meet with Mr. Putin in Russia’s Far East and both leaders at the time talked about a reciprocal visit by the Russian leader.
Mr. Putin has also hinted that Moscow may be ready to provide help to North Korea’s military spy satellite program. The Kim regime has suffered several launch failures trying to get new surveillance satellites into space in recent months.
South Korean news sources say the two sides may issue a joint declaration of more intensive military, economic and security relations, but that it was unlikely Mr. Putin and Mr. Kim were prepared to sign a formal treaty of military alliance.
The Kremlin in its statement said Mr. Putin, who also takes relatively few trips abroad since the Ukraine war began, will also visit Vietnam this week after leaving Pyongyang.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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