Before a visit to Pyongyang, Vladimir Putin assures North Korea of ​​his “unwavering support”

He was speaking a few hours before his arrival in Pyongyang for an exceptional visit. Russian President Vladimir Putin assured, Tuesday June 18, North Korea of “unwavering support” from his country. “Russia supported [la Corée du Nord] and its heroic people in their struggle to defend their right to choose the path of independence, originality and development for themselves in the confrontation with the cunning, dangerous and aggressive enemy, yesterday and tomorrow as well, and she will unwaveringly support them in the future.”, he wrote in a column published by the official North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun and the KCNA agency. He also said that Pyongyang “firmly supports” the Russian military offensive in Ukraine and thanked him for it.

Vladmir Putin is due to make a state visit to North Korea on Tuesday and Wednesday, after which a strategic partnership agreement could be signed between these two countries whose alliance the West perceives as a threat. Americans and Europeans have been worried for months about the accelerated rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang, accusing the North Koreans of delivering munitions to Russia for its assault on Ukraine in exchange for technological, diplomatic and food assistance.

A few hours before Vladimir Putin’s scheduled arrival in Pyongyang, incidents broke out on the inter-Korean border. According to the South Korean General Staff, “several dozen North Korean soldiers crossed the military demarcation line”, before retreating under warning shots from the South. This is the second such incursion in less than two weeks. Furthermore, according to the South Korean general staff, several North Korean soldiers were injured by the explosion of mines they were laying along the border.