Russian delegations visit Pyongyang as Ukraine war deepens ties

SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met Russia’s natural resources minister in Pyongyang on Nov 18, state media reported, as visiting delegations from Moscow highlighted deepening ties amid the Ukraine war.

Mr Kim met Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Alexander Kozlov, who is leading a delegation to an inter-governmental panel on “cooperation in trade, economy, science and technology”, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

Meanwhile, a delegation from a Russian military academy also arrived in the North Korean capital, KCNA said, without providing details on the purpose of the visit.

The United States and South Korea have accused the nuclear-armed North of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine, with experts saying that Mr Kim was eager for Moscow’s advanced technology, plus battle experience for his troops, in return.

North Korea recently ratified a landmark defence pact with Russia, formalising months of tightening military bonds between two nations that were Communist allies throughout the Cold War.

Noting the new treaty, Mr Kim, in his meeting with Mr Kozlov, called for “further promoting” trade as well as “scientific and technological exchange”, according to KCNA.

Their meeting “proceeded in a friendly and sincere atmosphere”, KCNA said.

In exchange for North Korea’s troops, the West fears Russia is offering technological support that could advance Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme.

Washington has said that North Korean troops have begun combat operations alongside Russian forces.

The reclusive state recently fired a salvo of ballistic missiles and tested a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile. AFP