The North Korean and Russian leaders, Kim Jong-un and Vladimir V. Putin, arrived on Wednesday at a site in Russia’s far east for a summit meeting, Russian state media reported. The talks will be closely watched for indications that Mr. Kim has agreed to supply munitions the Kremlin needs for its war in Ukraine.
Mr. Kim and Mr. Putin, the Russian president, are both pariahs, isolated from the West, but the war in Ukraine has elevated the North Korean leader’s significance to the Kremlin. Mr. Putin’s invasion has dragged on for nearly 19 months, and he needs allies; North Korea is one of the few countries willing to supply Russia with weapons.
The Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported that the two leaders had arrived on Wednesday morning at Vostochny Cosmodrome, a space launch center in Russia’s far eastern Amur region, where they shook hands.
Mr. Putin told reporters that the summit was being held at the cosmodrome because Mr. Kim “shows great interest in rocket technology,” RIA journalists reported on Telegram.
Mr. Kim arrived in Russia on Tuesday from North Korea, having traveled to the meeting on his armored train, a trip that took days. North Korean news media reported that he had departed Pyongyang, the capital, on Sunday afternoon; the Kremlin confirmed his arrival in Russia on Tuesday, with state media publishing video images of him being greeted by a Russian official at a stop identified as being in the city of Khasan, just over North Korea’s northeastern border.
Despite international sanctions and domestic economic hardship, North Korea operates one of the world’s largest standing armies and a vigorous defense industry. U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that North Korea was shipping artillery shells and rockets for Russian troops…
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