On the lunch menu Wednesday at the Vostochny cosmodrome in Russia’s far east: Crab dumplings, entrecôte of marbled beef … with a side of deadly weapons.
At the closely watched summit of global outcasts, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday pledged cooperation with North Korea’s dictator Kim Jong Un.
While Russia was widely believed to be seeking an arms deal with North Korea, the meeting ended without major announcements on weapons, although Putin acknowledged that the issue was on the agenda.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, which has isolated the Kremlin and left it hunting allies — and military equipment — in other ostracized capitals like Pyongyang and Tehran.
“Our friendship has deep roots, and now our country’s first priority is relations with the Russian Federation,” Kim told reporters, after he arrived following a lengthy journey on his armored train for his first trip to Russia since 2019, according to Russian state-owned newswire Ria Novosti.
“Russia has now risen to defend its state sovereignty and defend its security to counter the hegemonic forces that oppose Russia,” the North Korean ruler added, echoing the Kremlin’s propaganda used to justify its aggression in Ukraine.
Kim’s visit came as Russia is seeking to buy artillery ammunition from North Korea for its invasion of Ukraine, where Moscow is estimated to have used between 10 and 11 million rounds over the past 18 months in its grinding full-scale invasion, a Western official told Reuters last week.
Military analysts say a potential arms deal between Moscow and Pyongyang could help Russia replenish its depleted stocks, but is unlikely to change the tide of the war.
Asked whether military cooperation was on the agenda, Putin said: “We’ll talk about all the issues slowly. There is time.”
The Russian president, who was accompanied by Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for the negotiations, added that Russia would help North Korea build space satellites.
“That’s why we came here. The leader of [North Korea] shows great interest in rocket technology, they are trying to develop space,” Putin said.
Kim has made the development of spy satellites — an important military asset — a priority for his highly militarized country. So far, it has made two attempts to launch a satellite, both of which failed.
The cosmodrome summit lasted over five hours in total and included a dinner consisting of a duck salad, crab dumplings, fish soup, then a choice of sturgeon with mushrooms and potatoes or an entrecôte of marbled beef with grilled vegetables, before ending on a dessert with berries. There was also a selection of Russian wines.
It ended with Kim toasting Putin’s “good health” and to “the continuous development of Russian-Korean friendship.”
Nicolas Camut
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