North Korean leader Kim Jong-un arrived in Vladivostok on Tuesday, on a rare trip abroad, to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin which are expected to focus on weapon sales.
Mr Kim, who travelled to Russia by armoured train accompanied by top arms industry and military officials, left Pyongyang for Russia on Sunday. His bulletproof train travels at only 40kph due to the country's archaic rail network.
Following a wheel change because the two countries use different rail gauges, the train arrived about 20 hours later in the outskirts of Vladivostok, a city where Mr Putin is currently attending an economic forum.
Russia's natural resources minister was set to meet Mr Kim following his arrival, state news agency RIA reported.
The leaders are set to meet "in the coming days", said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, although the exact time or location was not disclosed.
“It will be a fully fledged visit,” Mr Peskov said.
“There will be negotiations between two delegations, and after that, if necessary, the leaders will continue their communication in a one-on-one format.”
Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu will also participate in the talks, the Interfax news agency said.
Experts suggest Mr Putin is seeking artillery shells and anti-tank missiles from North Korea for Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Mr Kim is reportedly in search of advanced technology for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines, as well as food aid for his impoverished nation.
Discussions could also include humanitarian aid to North Korea and the UN Security Council resolutions imposed against Pyongyang, Russian officials said.
He “left here by his train on Sunday afternoon to visit the Russian Federation” accompanied by senior figures in the Communist Party, the government and military agencies, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
KCNA did not report on the location of Mr Kim's train on Tuesday. But a source told Reuters early on Tuesday he had crossed the border into Russia.
On Monday, the agency had reported that “Comrade Kim Jong-un will meet and have a talk with Comrade Putin during the visit”.
Washington and its allies have expressed concern at recent signs of closer military co-operation between Russia and the nuclear-armed North Korea.
This will be Mr Kim's second summit with Mr Putin, after they met in 2019 on his last trip abroad.
Mr Peskov said Russia's national interests would dictate its policies.
“As you know, while implementing our relations with our neighbours, including North Korea, the interests of our two countries are important to us, and not warnings from Washington,” Mr Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian media.
Washington derided the coming summit as a sign that Mr Putin was “begging” for help with his floundering invasion of Ukraine.
The confirmation from North Korea ends days of speculation after US and other officials said recently that Mr Kim, who rarely leaves North Korea, was likely to head to Vladivostok for arms talks with Mr Putin.
Mr Kim has not travelled outside North Korea since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
The make-up of the North Korean delegation, including top defence industry and military officials, notably Munitions Industry Department Director Jo Chun-ryong, suggests defence industry co-operation is high on the agenda, analysts said.
“The presence of Jo Chun-ryong indicates that North Korea and Russia will conclude some type of agreement on munitions purchases,” said Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert at the Washington-based Stimson Center.
Mr Kim could offer artillery rounds from North Korea's large stockpile, which could replenish Russia's capacity in the short term, but questions about the ammunition's quality may limit its overall impact, military analysts said.
Mr Kim has been steadfast in his support for Moscow's Ukraine invasion, including – Washington says – by supplying rockets and missiles.
The White House recently warned that Pyongyang would “pay a price” if it supplies Moscow with arms for its war in Ukraine.
On Monday, the US described Mr Putin as desperate in seeking a meeting with Mr Kim.
“Having to travel across the length of his own country to meet an international pariah to ask for assistance in a war that he expected to win in the opening month, I would characterise it as him begging for assistance,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
“President Putin launched this war against Ukraine, with its full-scale aggression, with a dream of restoring the glory of the Russian Empire. That hope, that expectation of his, has failed.”
Mr Miller repeated US warnings that a weapons deal between Moscow and Pyongyang could lead to more sanctions.
Mr Kim is well-known for his preference for train travel on his rare international trips. His father and predecessor, Kim Jong-il, was famously scared of flying.
In 2019, the current leader made the 60-hour return trip from Hanoi to Pyongyang by train after a summit with then-US president Donald Trump collapsed.
The North Korean leader's luxury train is equipped with the communications equipment and gadgets necessary to function as Mr Kim’s “moving office,” South Korea’s Yonhap News reported.
It reportedly has a special compartment for transporting Mr Kim’s bulletproof Mercedes-Benz limousine. The leader’s exclusive compartment is lined from ceiling to floor with iron plates to protect against bomb attacks, such as from explosives set along the tracks, Yonhap News added.
The few glimpses North Korea state media has given from inside the train show Mr Kim at his desk with a laptop and TV monitor. The train also includes a car for meetings, fitted with plush leather chairs.
Rare foreign trips
The North Korean leader did not leave his country for six years after taking power in 2011.
In 2018 he embarked on a 15-month international travel spree, heading to China, Russia, Vietnam and Singapore to meet world leaders in a bout of ill-fated diplomatic engagement.
Talks collapsed, after which the coronavirus pandemic hit, so Mr Kim stopped travelling entirely, sealing off his country's borders for three years, with even North Korean nationals overseas not allowed to return.
