North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived on Tuesday, September 12 Russia Washington warned that a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin could lead to an arms sales deal to support Russian military action in Ukraine.

The reported meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin illustrates Russia’s isolation on the international stage, a spokesman for the French foreign ministry said on Tuesday (September 12th). “Forced to return, Russia is isolated North Korea,” Anne-Claire Legendre noted during a press conference.This is a very strong sign of its international isolation.“, he added when asked about the significance of this meeting.

Both of you need to talk.”Key topics» in the coming days, said the Kremlin spokesman, quoted by the Russian agency RIA Novosti. Kim Jong-un, who left Pyongyang on an armored train on Sunday evening, is making his first foreign trip since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. For his last foreign trip, he met Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok in 2019.

“The interest of our two countries is important to us.”

Kim Jong-un is expected to meet him somewhere in the Russian Far East in the coming days. Moscow did not specify the date or location of the meeting. Vladimir Putin is currently attending the annual economic forum in Vladivostok, in the Littoral region, which ends on Wednesday. But according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the meeting should take place in another setting.

Dmitry Peskov told Russian media that the two leaders would discuss the issues.Sensitivity“without paying attention”For warnings» American. Washington fears that Moscow, under sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs, will receive weapons from North Korea for its military operations in Ukraine.

«In building relations with our neighbors, including North Korea, what matters to us is the interests of both countries, not Washington’s warnings.“, he declared.

Green carts

Kim Jong-un’s train has entered Russia and is traveling along the Russian littoral bordering North Korea, RIA Novosti reported. Pictures from the Russian agency show a convoy of dark green wagons being pulled along a track by a Russian locomotive.

According to the South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo, it takes at least 20 hours to connect Pyongyang and Vladivostok, with Kim Jong-un’s special train – probably the heaviest – traveling at around 60 km/h. Kim Jong-un’s foreign trips are very rare.He left by train for the Russian Federation on Sunday afternoon», the official North Korean agency KCNA announced on Tuesday.

The North Korean leader is accompanied by his defense chief, his foreign minister and senior military officials, including those in charge of weapons production and space technology, state media said. According to experts, the meeting between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un is likely to focus on the arms deal, as Vladimir Putin will seek to acquire shell and anti-tank missiles from North Korea.

For its part, Pyongyang is reportedly seeking advanced technology for nuclear-powered satellites and submarines, as well as food aid. Washington scoffed at the meeting, saying it was Vladimir Putin’s “begs» We help him to carry out his activities in Ukraine.

Historical links

Russia and North Korea have historical ties. Kim Jong-un has repeatedly expressed his support for Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine. Andriy Langov, an expert on North Korea at Kookmin University in Seoul, said the Putin-Kim summit was part of the plan.A diplomatic threat of sorts» From Moscow to Seoul, Russia wants to prevent South Koreans from supplying arms to Ukraine.

Seoul is a major exporter of military equipment and has sold tanks to Kiev’s ally Poland. But its longstanding domestic policy prohibits supplying arms to parties to armed conflicts.

«The main concern of the Russian government at the moment is the supply of South Korean ammunition to Ukraine, not just one supply, but several supplies.», Andreï Lankov continued to AFP.

“Protracted conflict in Ukraine likely to escalate”

Seong Seong-sang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute, said that if Pyongyang intensifies military cooperation with Moscow, “Protracted conflict in Ukraine is likely to escalate“. as a reward for his assistance to Moscow, “North Korea’s development of nuclear-powered submarines and spy satellites could advance at a rapid pace».

«North Korea has the weapons Putin needs for its illegal war in Ukraine, and Moscow has underwater, ballistic and satellite technologies that could help Pyongyang overcome the engineering challenges imposed by sanctions.», observes Leif-Erik Eisley, professor at Ewha University in Seoul.