North Korean leader Kim Jong-un arrived in Russia in an armoured train on Tuesday for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin to discuss a potential arms deal.
The North Korean dictator made the private train journey during the night for added security, with the visit fuelling concerns that North Korea may provide military support for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
The pair are set to have bilateral talks, amid warnings from Washington that they should not trade weapons.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “It will be a fully fledged visit. There will be negotiations between two delegations, and after that, if necessary, the leaders will continue their communication in a one-on-one format.”
In footage relayed by Russian television, Kim can be seen getting out of his dark green luxury 21-carriage train, dubbed a “moving fortress” – which is bullet proof and has steel-plated walls and floors to shield against explosives. A brass band played the Russian national anthem as he was welcomed by Alexander Koslov, Russia’s Minister for natural resources.
Russian state media confirmed that Kim’s train had reached the Primorsky region of the country on Tuesday, with Kim expected to meet Putin in the Far East this week, according to Kremlin Spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov – with the meeting set to include a lunch in Kim’s honour.
Last week, a report claimed that Kim and Putin would be meeting to discuss supplying weapons to support the war in Ukraine. The visit is a rare trip outside his own country, with Kim’s last international visit being when he met with Putin face to face in 2019.
The New York Times have reported that Kim will travel from Pyongyang to hold talks with the Russian president in Vladivostok, on Russia’s pacific coast.
Putin is seeking to secure new supplies from North Korea, with Kim in return seeking access to Russian technology for nuclear-powered submarines, along with food aid.
It comes as the US accused Russia of negotiating an arms deal with North Korea after Russia’s defence minister, Sergei Shoigu was pictured alongside Kim at a defence exhibition showcasing North Korea’s ballistic missiles in July.
In August, the US raised Putin and Kim’s exchange of letters discussing a new arms deal, with White House national security spokesman John Kirby warning that negotiations between were “actively advancing.”
“As we have warned publicly, arms negotiations between Russia and DPRK are actively advancing. We have information that Kim Jong-Un expects these discussions to continue, possibly to include high-level diplomatic engagement in Russia,” a US National Security spokesperson said.
The US has said that if the two nations make an arms deal, it will ramp up sanctions on both countries.
The meeting between the pair comes as Putin claimed that Britain was behind a Ukrainian special forces attack on a Russian nuclear power plant.
Ahead of his meeting with Kim, Putin warned that Britain was provoking Russia to strike atomic facilities within Ukraine.
“Are they trying to provoke us into retaliating against Ukrainian atomic power stations?” he said, saying his claims were the “complete, absolute, crystal truth.”
The Kremlin has previously brought up the threat of nuclear escalation in order to caution against Western support for Ukraine.
During an economic conference this week, Putin pledged his support for former US leader Donald Trump, describing the case against the former president as a “persecution of a political rival.”
“We hear that Mr Trump says he will solve pressing problems in a few days, including the Ukrainian crisis,” Putin said. “Well, this cannot but bring happiness.”
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