Kim promises to help Russia with ‘everything’ as Putin thanks North Korea for war aid
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Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attend a meeting in Beijing, on Sept 3.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BEIJING - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pledged his full support to the Russian President on Sept 3, promising to do "everything I can to assist" Moscow, while Mr Vladimir Putin thanked Pyongyang for sending troops to fight against Ukraine.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of celebrations in Beijing to mark the anniversary of Japan’s formal surrender in World War II.
Hours earlier, the pair flanked Chinese President Xi Jinping
After the parade, Mr Kim and Mr Putin travelled in the same car to a state guest house for private bilateral discussions.
“If there is anything I can or must do for you and the Russian people, I consider it my duty as a fraternal obligation,” Mr Kim told Mr Putin.
Mr Putin addressed Mr Kim as “Dear Chairman of State Affairs” in Russian and extended his warmest greetings.
The two countries are bound by a 2024 mutual defence treaty and both face heavy international sanctions – Russia for its war in Ukraine and North Korea for its nuclear weapons programme.
“Recently, relations between our countries have assumed a special, trusting and friendly character, and an allied character,” Mr Putin said, and praised North Korean special forces that were deployed to help Russian troops. “Your soldiers fought courageously and heroically.”
North Korean troops helped Moscow
“I would like to note that we will never forget the sacrifices that your armed forces and the families of your servicemen have suffered,” Mr Putin said.
He invited Mr Kim to visit Russia after talks between both leaders ended.
“See you soon,” Mr Kim said through an interpreter, giving Mr Putin a goodbye hug after talks that lasted 2½ hours.
“We are waiting for you, come visit us,” Mr Putin replied, according to a video published by the Kremlin.
The Beijing visit, Mr Kim's first known trip to China since the Covid-19 pandemic, gave the reclusive North Korean leader his first chance to meet Mr Putin and Mr Xi together, as well as mingle with the more than two dozen other national leaders who attended the events.
According to Pul Pervogo, a social media account that reports widely on Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's activities, Mr Kim spoke to Mr Lukashenko before the parade and invited him to visit Pyongyang.
Professor Park Won-gon, a North Korea expert at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, called the visit a major propaganda win for Mr Kim.
“Just standing and walking side by side with Xi Jinping and Putin.
“How could there be any better way for him to show his status to the world and to his people?”
REUTERS
