According to the South Korean Defence Ministry, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Russia on Tuesday (September 12) aboard his heavily protected private train. This visit comes ahead of his scheduled meeting with President Vladimir Putin. The Ministry of National Defence claimed in a statement that “North Korea’s Kim Jong Un is believed to have arrived in Russia early this morning via a private train.” According to the Russian state news agency Ria Novosti, the train crossed the border from North Korea into the Primorsky area. Visual evidence shows a train of dark green carriages being hauled along a railway track by a Russian Railways locomotive.
Kim’s entourage is likely to include crucial leaders such as his foreign minister and high-ranking military officials
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet in Russia’s Far East, according to Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, as reported by Russian news agency TASS. “We are not yet telling [where the talks will take place] in the Far East,” he added, adding that the talks will be held between the two delegations as well as one-on-one, followed by an official supper. Images issued by North Korean official media showed Kim Jong Un strolling by honour guards and crowds of citizens holding the national flag and bouquets. According to the Associated Press, they also included photos of him waving goodbye from his green-and-yellow armoured train as it left the station.
Kim’s entourage is likely to include crucial leaders such as his foreign minister, Choe Sun Hui, and high-ranking military officials such as Korean People’s Army Marshals Ri Pyong Chol and Pak Jong Chon. According to the Korean Central News Agency, a number of top officials gathered at the station to bid the North Korean leader farewell. The Kremlin’s official announcement on Monday (September 11) said simply that the visit was at President Putin’s request and would take place “in the coming days.” The Korean Central News Agency confirmed that the leaders would meet, but did not identify the date or venue. Kim’s current trip is his first overseas vacation since the COVID-19 pandemic, during which North Korea maintained harsh border restrictions for more than three years to protect its poor healthcare system.