Russian President Vladimir V. Putin has arrived in North Korea, his first visit in 24 years, after vowing to take ties with Pyongyang to new heights and jointly reject the U.S. “global neo-colonialist dictatorship,” according to Russian state media.
North Korea's supreme leader, Kim Jong Un, met with the Russian president on the airport tarmac early Wednesday local time, according to Russian state news agencies.
Putin arrived at midnight, disembarking from the plane on a red carpet laid out by uniformed guards and embracing the waiting North Korean leader, according to a video later released by the Kremlin. Kim escorted Putin to a Russian-made Aurus limousine given to him by Kim last year.
The war with Ukraine has drawn Putin ever closer to Kim Jong Un, who has gained new clout within the Kremlin by opening up his vast military warehouses to Moscow.
Nine months ago, after Kim arrived in Russia's Far East in an armored train, the two men met at a Russian cosmodrome and toasted a “sacred struggle” against the West. The North Korean leader extended an invitation to Putin to visit each other, in between touring Russia's sensitive rocket and fighter jet facilities.
The Russian president has now accepted his offer, and the deepening ties between the two authoritarian leaders pose a particular challenge for Washington. The United States once counted on Moscow's cooperation in efforts to curb North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. Now it faces a Kremlin that seeks to sabotage American geopolitical interests around the world.
Russian state media released footage showing large Russian flags and a portrait of a smiling Putin lining the streets of Pyongyang as North Korea prepared to welcome the Russian leader.
What does Russia want?
Ahead of the visit, Putin issued an order approving the signing of a new “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” agreement with North Korea.
Writing in North Korea's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, he also praised Kim for resisting “economic pressure, provocations, intimidation and military threats from the United States” and thanked North Korea for its strong support for Russia's operation in Ukraine.
Victory over Ukraine has guided Russian foreign policy for more than two years, and Putin's top priority during his visit will be ensuring North Korea's continued cooperation in achieving battlefield goals.
North Korea is one of the world's poorest and most isolated countries, but it has one of the largest military forces.
The exact scale of North Korea's military support for Moscow's war effort is unclear, but many analysts say the contribution is meaningful because Russian forces need more ammunition than ever before in their war of attrition with Kiev, and their recent territorial gains against Ukraine also allow them to spend more ammunition.
South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said in an interview with Bloomberg last week that the country was tracking at least 10,000 containers, each capable of holding 4.8 million artillery shells, being shipped from North Korea to Russia, and predicted Putin would make more demands during his visit.
Before Kim Jong Un's visit to Russia last year, U.S. intelligence agencies reported that Moscow had purchased millions of artillery shells from North Korea, and the United States later accused Russia at the United Nations of firing multiple North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukraine.
But questions have been raised about the quality of North Korea's supplies, with Kiev officials saying Russia fired about 50 North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukrainian territory last winter, with a high failure rate.
North Korea is already benefiting from its growing ties with Moscow. In March, Russia rejected the annual renewal of a U.N. panel of experts that has been scrutinizing North Korea's violations of sanctions for 15 years. The move highlighted a dramatic shift in Moscow's stance toward North Korea, after it has long played a role in U.N. disarmament efforts in the country.
Before ending their mission, U.N. monitors confirmed that debris from a January attack on the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv was caused by a North Korean missile and said the weapons transfer violated a U.N. arms embargo against Pyongyang, which bans the import and export of weapons, Reuters reported.
Putin is unlikely to acknowledge any ammunition or arms transfers took place during his visit, and Russia has denied any military transfers that would violate a UN embargo.
The two leaders plan to discuss energy, transport, agriculture, economic and security issues during the visit, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri V. Ushakov said at a press conference on Monday.
Putin is also scheduled to visit Vietnam later this week, highlighting Moscow's willingness to counter U.S. interests even in a country with improving ties with the U.S. The Russian president's visit to Vietnam follows Biden's visit in September.
What does North Korea want?
Kim, whose grandfather seized power with the backing of Moscow in 1948 and founded North Korea, has steadily expanded his arsenal of sophisticated weaponry and increasingly sought support from the Kremlin.
The warming of ties between Moscow and Pyongyang has led to the unraveling of international efforts to contain North Korea's nuclear and missile ambitions, raising questions about future enforcement of sanctions.
Questions have persisted since the two leaders met last year about what Kim Jong Un is receiving in return for supplying Moscow with ballistic missiles and coveted artillery shells.
In particular, the current conflict has given Pyongyang a rare opportunity to evaluate the performance of its missiles in combat and perfect their designs.
North Korea would also welcome greater access to advanced Russian military technology, including its extensive knowledge of satellites. Two months after Kim Jong Un's visit to Russia last year, North Korea launched its first military reconnaissance satellite into orbit, a launch that South Korean officials said was made possible with technical assistance from Moscow.
Russia, which has the world's largest nuclear arsenal and most advanced submarine program, possesses a range of technologies that North Korea is interested in. Despite years of disarmament efforts by Washington and the United Nations, North Korea has conducted six nuclear tests and is developing an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States.
North Korea, isolated from the rest of the world by international sanctions, has a range of needs beyond the military that Moscow can help with: South Korean officials say Russia, the world's largest wheat exporter, supplies it with food and raw materials as well as parts for weapons production.
In an article published in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper ahead of his visit, Putin said Moscow would support North Korea's struggle against a “cunning, dangerous and aggressive enemy” by deepening economic ties and establishing a new trade settlement system free from U.S. interference.
Ushakov said trade between Russia and North Korea would reach $34.4 million in 2023, nine times higher than the previous year. He said the summit would also discuss the restoration of humanitarian ties, which had been suspended during the pandemic due to North Korea's strict rules.
