N. Korean leader Kim enters Russia for 1st talks with Putin

KHASAN, Russia - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un crossed into Russia on a private train, after leaving Pyongyang earlier Wednesday for his first talks with President Vladimir Putin.
It will be the first time for Kim to meet with a foreign leader since his February visit to Hanoi, Vietnam, where his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump fell short of a deal over the scope of North Korea's denuclearization and sanctions relief.

Putin and Kim will hold their first one-on-one talks in the port city of Vladivostok, on Thursday, with Pyongyang's denuclearization expected to be high on the agenda.

As the private train carrying Kim arrived at Khasan station on the Russian border with North Korea, a welcome ceremony was held. Among the Russians who greeted him at the station was Alexander Kozlov, minister for the development of the Russian Far East.

North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency had earlier reported Kim's dawn departure from the capital, Pyongyang.

During his first trip to Russia since becoming supreme leader in 2011, Kim is likely to seek its cooperation in the easing of international economic sanctions aimed at thwarting Pyongyang's nuclear and missile ambitions.

As North Korea's economy is considered sluggish, Kim has called for the lifting of sanctions, saying his country has started to take concrete measures toward denuclearization.

Russia -- one of the five veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- is believed keen to bolster its economic relations with North Korea.

Putin has voiced willingness to realize potential joint projects involving Russia and the two Koreas, such as infrastructure investment and energy development, which cannot go forward while international sanctions remain in place on the North.

At their meeting, Putin and Kim are also expected to exchange views on how to proceed with U.S.-North Korea denuclearization negotiations, and establish a peace mechanism for the Korean Peninsula, foreign affairs specialists say.

In his speech at a session of the nation's top legislature on April 12, Kim urged the United States to shift its stance in the nuclear talks by the end of this year, saying he is eager to meet again with Trump, depending on the attitude Washington adopts.

Kim is scheduled to visit Vladivostok through Friday. The last visit by a North Korean leader to Russia was made by Kim's late father, Kim Jong Il, in August 2011.

North Korea was established on Sept. 9, 1948, backed by the Soviet Union, Russia's predecessor. Ties between Moscow and Pyongyang have been often described as "traditional friendly relations."

Source: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190424/p2g/00m/0in/018000c