Putin invites North Korea's Kim to Russia as they meet in Beijing

Seoul, Sep 3 (IANS) Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday invited North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to visit Russia again, a Russian report said, as they held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of a military parade in Beijing.

The two leaders met at the Diaoyutai state guest house after attending the military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in 1945, Yonhap News Agency reported.

As Putin escorted Kim to his car at the end of the meeting, the North Korean leader told him, "See you soon," to which Putin replied that he will be "waiting", urging him to "Please come," Russia's Tass news agency reported.

Kim has visited Russia twice so far, in 2019 and 2023, for talks with Putin.

During the talks Kim also thanked Putin for hailing the North's troops deployed in Russia to aid Moscow's war against Ukraine.

Putin said he will "never forget" the role of North Korean soldiers who fought "bravely and heroically" in Russia's front-line region of Kursk in the war against Ukraine.

In response, Kim thanked Putin for praising his troops fighting for Russia and stressed that the North considers it a "brotherly duty" to provide assistance to Moscow.

Kim emphasised that the relations between the two countries have developed in all aspects since they signed a strategic partnership treaty in June last year, which included a mutual defence pact on providing immediate military assistance if either faced armed aggression.

He then vowed to do "everything possible" to help Russia.

The meeting comes amid deepening cooperation between North Korea and Russia in a wide range of areas, which has involved the North's deployment of troops in support of Russia in its war against Ukraine.

Since October last year, North Korea has sent around 13,000 troops and conventional weapons to support Russia's war efforts.

--IANS

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