SEOUL: Ahead of the important Korean War anniversary celebrations, Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un met with the Russian defence minister and a senior Chinese delegation in Pyongyang, the state media reported on Thursday.
According to the official Korean Central News Agency, Sergei Shoigu of Moscow and Kim had “a friendly talk.” Shoigu delivered Kim “an autographed letter” from Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also met with a Chinese group ahead of a “grand performance” for the occasion on Thursday.
The team was led by politburo member Li Hongzhong, who “courteously handed the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un a personal letter sent by Xi Jinping.”
The armistice ending hostilities in the Korean War on July 27, 1953, is commemorated in Pyongyang on its 70th anniversary as Victory Day. One of the few countries Pyongyang keeps cordial ties with is Russia, a longtime ally of North Korea.
KCNA said that Kim and Shoigu talked about matters of mutual interest in the field of defence and security.
During Kim and Shoigu’s visit to a military exhibition, the Russian minister was reportedly shown “new-type weapons and equipment,” according to a separate dispatch from KCNA.
The leader of North Korea has consistently backed Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, including, according to Washington, by providing rockets and missiles.
He informed Shoigu of the “weapons and equipment that were invented and produced” as part of North Korea’s national defense strategy during the visit, according to KCNA, and “repeatedly expressed the belief that the Russian army and people would achieve great successes.” —AFP/APP
