Vladimir Putin invited Kim Jong-un to visit Russia during a lengthy bilateral meeting in Beijing, with Kim pledging to do everything he can to assist Moscow. The meeting took place on the sidelines of China's biggest military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the second world war, attended by Xi Jinping. North Korea has supplied weapons, artillery shells, missiles and thousands of troops to support Russia since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Russia and North Korea signed a mutual assistance agreement last year obliging support if either is attacked. A visit to Russia would be Kim's third foreign trip in six years.
North Korea has become a key Russian support since the country invaded Ukraine in 2022. Pyongyang sent weapons including artillery shells and missiles to Russia for the war and thousands of troops to fight in Russia's Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces had made a cross-border incursion, although the deployment was initially denied. Russia and North Korea last year signed an agreement that mutually obliges them to provide military and other assistance in the event the other is attacked.
In a bilateral meeting that lasted more than two hours, Kim was recorded telling Putin see you soon and hugging him goodbye. We are waiting for you, come visit us, Putin replied. A visit to Russia would be just the third time Kim has travelled abroad in six years. The first was to the far east of Russia in 2023, and the second this week's visit to Beijing, arriving on an armoured train.
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