Vladimir Putin thanks Kim Jong-un as he arrives in North Korea for first time in 24 years

Vladimir Putin has thanked Kim Jong-un for supporting him in his war with Ukraine as he arrived in North Korea.

The Russian leader said the countries would cooperate closely to overcome US-led sanctions as he headed to Pyongyang today for a two-day visit with the countries deepening their alignment in the face of intensifying confrontations with Washington.

Putin, who is making his first visit to North Korea in 24 years, said he highly appreciates its firm support of his invasion of Ukraine. He said the countries would continue to “resolutely oppose” what he described as Western ambitions to “to hinder the establishment of a multipolarized world order based on mutual respect for justice.”

Putin also said Russia and North Korea will develop unspecified trade and payment systems “that are not controlled by the West” and jointly oppose sanctions against the countries, which he described as “unilateral and illegal restrictive measures.”

North Korea is under heavy UN Security Council economic sanctions over its nuclear weapons and missile programs, while Russia is also grappling with sanctions by the United States and its Western partners over its aggression in Ukraine.

Putin said the countries will also expand cooperation in tourism, culture and education. Putin’s visit comes amid growing concerns about an arms arrangement in which Pyongyang provides Moscow with badly needed munitions to fuel Putin’s war in Ukraine in exchange for economic assistance and technology transfers that would enhance the threat posed by Kim’s nuclear weapons and missile programme.

Putin is in Pyongyang for a two-day visit

Military, economic and other exchanges between North Korea and Russia have sharply increased since Kim visited the Russian Far East in September for a meeting with Putin, their first since 2019.

US and South Korean officials have accused the North of providing Russia with artillery, missiles and other military equipment to help prolong its fighting in Ukraine, possibly in return for key military technologies and aid. Both Pyongyang and Moscow have denied accusations about North Korean weapons transfers, which would violate multiple U.N. Security Council sanctions Russia previously endorsed.

Along with China, Russia has provided political cover for Kim’s continuing efforts to advance his nuclear arsenal, repeatedly blocking US-led efforts to impose fresh U.N. sanctions on the North over its weapons tests.

In March, a Russian veto at the United Nations ended monitoring of UN sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear programme, prompting Western accusations that Moscow is seeking to avoid scrutiny as it buys weapons from Pyongyang for use in Ukraine. Earlier this year, Putin sent Kim a high-end Aurus Senat limousine, which he had shown to the North Korean leader when they met for a summit in September. Observers said the shipment violated a UN resolution banning the supply of luxury items to North Korea.

John Kirby, spokesperson of the U.S. National Security Council, said the deepening relationship between Moscow and Pyongyang is concerning, “not just because of the impacts it’s going to have on the Ukrainian people, because we know North Korean ballistic missiles are still being used to hit Ukrainian targets, but because there could be some reciprocity here that could affect security on the Korean peninsula.”

“We haven’t seen the parameters of all of that right now, certainly haven’t seen it come to fruition. But we’re certainly going to be watching that very, very closely,” he added.

Lim Soosuk, spokesperson of South Korea’s Foreign Ministry, said Seoul has been stressing to Moscow that any cooperation between Russia and North Korea must not “proceed in a direction that violates UN Security Council resolutions or undermines peace and stability in the region.”

Lim also reiterated Seoul’s regret about Russia’s decision to veto a U.N. resolution in March that effectively abolished monitoring by UN experts of Security Council sanction enforcement against North Korea. US and South Korean officials have said they are discussing options for a new mechanism for monitoring the North.