North Korea’s Kim arrives in Russia’s far east for summit with Putin
US says Pyongyang set to supply arms for Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un prepared to meet in Russia’s Far East in coming days to complete an arms deal for the war in Ukraine, according to US intelligence.
Kim arrived on Tuesday via armored train in Khasan on the Russia-North Korea border where he was met by a military honor guard and Russian officials representing Putin.
In remarks at a welcoming ceremony, Kim said his visit showed Pyongyang is “prioritizing the strategic importance” of relations with Moscow. After the ceremony, Kim continued traveling into Russia toward an undisclosed destination. The trip is Kim’s first outside North Korea since the coronavirus pandemic. He last visited Russia in 2019.
The meeting between Putin and Kim will take place in Russia’s Far East, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists in Vladivostok on September 12, according to TASS, the official Russian news outlet.
"We are not telling yet (where talks will take place.) In the Far East," Peskov said, adding that the talks will be held between the two delegations as well as in a one-on-one format, followed by an official dinner. According to the Kremlin official, there was no press conference in the works.
Bruce Bennett, a defense researcher at the RAND Corporation, told ABC News that Russia can help advance Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program with technology to launch nuclear warheads on long-range missiles.
“Russia has at least a significant amount of that technology. If that gets to North Korea, that is really a whole lot more threatening that anything North Korea has got now,” Bennett said.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office urged Putin to “act responsibly” as he meets with North Korea’s leader.
“Our government has been understanding the overall situation well, independently and in cooperation with our allies and partner nations, and making full preparations,” Yoon’s office told South Korean media outlets.
“Many countries are watching the summit between North Korea, which is under UN sanctions, and Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security council, with a bit of concern for various reasons, but as the president has stated, we hope Russia will act responsibly as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.”
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson declined to comment on the Putin-Kim meeting.
“The DPRK leader’s visit to Russia is something between their two countries,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters. “China and the DPRK are friendly neighbors connected by mountains and rivers. Our bilateral relations are making sound progress.”
Washington has few tools beyond public pressure to convince North Korea’s dictator not to assist Russia. Harsh US and UN economic sanctions have failed to prevent Pyongyang from developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. North Korea has launched more than 100 missile tests since 2021.
“Providing weapons to Russia for use on the battlefield to attack grain silos and the heating infrastructure of major cities as we head into winter to try to conquer territory that belongs to another sovereign nation — this is not going to reflect well on North Korea, and they will pay a price for this in the international community,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said at a White House media briefing on September 5.
“We will continue to look for opportunities to dissuade the North Koreans from taking this step, to get others to do the same, and to report to the world what we are seeing in terms of the actively advancing discussions that are taking place between these two countries,” Sullivan said.
Beijing sets Fujian as Taiwan trade zone
China will make Fujian Province a demonstration zone for integrated development across the Taiwan Strait, according to a Communist Party circular released on Tuesday, state media reported.
The circular, issued by the Central Committee and the State Council, said the development zone would deepen the cross-Strait trade and advance peaceful reunification of China and Taiwan, Xinhua reported.
The objective is to make Fujian, a province on China’s southeast coast opposite Taiwan, the primary destination for Taiwan residents and enterprises to pursue development on the mainland.
“The province will see more convenient personnel exchanges with Taiwan when the demonstration zone is built, it added. By then, trade and investment across the Strait will be smoother, and cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation will expand to more fields and in greater depth.”
China builds up coastal military bases
China is building up its military bases along the coastline facing Taiwan, the self-ruled island’s Defense Ministry said in a report Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.
“This year, the Chinese Communist Party has aggressively expanded its armaments and continued to build various types of fighter jets and drones,” Maj Gen Huang Wen-Chi, the assistant deputy chief of intelligence of Taiwan’s Defense Ministry, said in a news conference releasing the biennial report. “The information we have received is that all important military bases along the coast … are being continuously updated.”
Three military airfields in China’s southeastern Fujian province at Longtian, Huian and Zhangzhou have been expanded, Huang said. Longtian is only 135 miles (217 kilometers) from Taiwan’s capital Taipei.
US lawmakers plan China visits
Two delegations of US lawmakers, encouraged by the Biden administration, are planning trips to China soon, according to The Washington Post. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Mike Crapo hope to lead a bipartisan visit in October, spokespeople for the two senators said Tuesday. Representative Ro Khanna told the Post that he wants to organize a trip by House lawmakers.
— William Roberts