North Korea’s Kim calls for more 'close contacts' with Russia

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Fresh from a high-profile visit to Russia and a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for strengthening "close contacts" with Moscow.

A politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea discussed Kim’s “official goodwill” visit to Russia, Pyongyang-based KCNA News reported on Friday.

“The recent visit put DPRK (North Korean)-Russia relations on a new strategic level in response to the demand of the new era and brought a radical change in the world geo-political situation,” said a report from the meeting, held on Wednesday.

Kim started his visit to Russia on Sept. 12 and ended it on Sept. 17.

Kim’s visit “introduced long-term plans for developing DPRK-Russia relations,” said the report, again using the official acronym for North Korea.

It “attained the desired results.”

Kim stressed the “need to strengthen close contacts and cooperation among relevant fields of the two countries to expand and develop cooperation in every field in an all-round way.”

The Kim-Putin meeting, and talk of military cooperation, raised fears in Western circles that North Korea may help Russia prolong its war on Ukraine, while Russia could help North Korea’s illegal weapons program.