webfact Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Spurned by Washington, North Korea's Kim seeks a friend in Putin By Maria Vasilyeva and Vladimir Soldatkin North Korean leader Kim Jong Un takes part in a welcoming ceremony at a railway station in Khasan, Russia in this undated photo released on April 24, 2019 by North Korea's Central News Agency (KCNA). KCNA via REUTERS VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday at a summit designed to show that Washington is not the only power able to set the agenda on Pyongyang's nuclear programme. The two men will sit down together on an island off the Russian Pacific city of Vladivostok two months after Kim's summit with U.S. President Donald Trump ended in disagreement, cooling hopes of a breakthrough in the decades-old nuclear row. The summit in Vladivostok - the first ever between Putin and Kim - provides Pyongyang with an opportunity to seek support from a new quarter, Russia, and possible relief from the sanctions hurting its economy. For the Kremlin, the summit is a chance to show it is a global diplomatic player, despite efforts by the United States and other Western states to isolate it. But with Moscow committed to upholding sanctions until the North dismantles its nuclear programme, analysts said the summit was unlikely to produce any tangible help for Pyongyang, beyond a show of camaraderie. In an interview with Russian state television as his train made a stop off on the journey to Vladivostok, Kim said he was looking forward to useful talks. "I hope that we can discuss concrete questions about peace negotiations on the Korean peninsula, and our bilateral relations," he said through an interpreter. ARMOURED TRAIN Kim Jong Un, making his first trip to Russia as North Korean leader, arrived at the train station in Vladivostok on Wednesday on board an armoured train -- his preferred mode of international transport. After a brief delay while the train had to be repositioned to line up with the red carpet laid out on the platform, he disembarked and headed in a convoy of limousines and minivans across a bridge linking mainland Vladivostok to Russky island, the summit venue. Putin has yet to arrive in Vladivostok. Putin's last summit with a North Korean leader was in 2002 when his counterpart was Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un's father and predecessor. Kim Jong Il also met in 2011 with Dmitry Medvedev, the Putin lieutenant who was then Russian president. There was heightened security around Vladivostok in preparation for the summit, with an unusually heavy police presence, especially at the university campus on Russky island where the talks will take place. Classes were still in progress on Wednesday but students were having their documents checked on the way in, and vehicles were no longer allowed to enter the campus. The Russian and North Korean flags fluttered from lamp-posts around the university. (Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Gareth Jones) -- © Copyright Reuters 2019-04-25 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tug Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Donald will be miffed he wasent invited to the despots club lol don’t know if putin wants to play because little Kim is broke he doesent have much to offer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puchaiyank Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 It is not coincidental that Kim meets with the Chinese to receive his marching orders before meeting with the US... Putin will continue to coach Kim as it applies to Russian interests... A cartoon with Chinese and Russian leaders dangling Kim from puppet strings would be a realistic picture of Kim's position... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thainesss Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 59 minutes ago, webfact said: Spurned by Washington, North Korea's Kim seeks a friend in Putin They were already friends, through China. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdenner Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 What! No cheese? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lannarebirth Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 2 hours ago, Tug said: Donald will be miffed he wasent invited to the despots club lol don’t know if putin wants to play because little Kim is broke he doesent have much to offer I think Donald's gonna be the topic of conversation: https://www.yahoo.com/news/north-korea-executes-four-officials-failed-us-summit-report-claims-140135012.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keemapoot Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 2 hours ago, Tug said: Donald will be miffed he wasent invited to the despots club lol don’t know if putin wants to play because little Kim is broke he doesent have much to offer Neither does Putin. Russia has no spare cash to give N. Korea, but remains keenly interested in securing and reducing the N. Korean nuclear arsenal, protecting its border, keeping cheap N. Korean Labor flowing into Russia, and playing Trump as usual to maintain its influence with Kim. Looks like business as usual to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bendejo Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Ugh! That cake probably weighs as much as Kim! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harada Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Mmm very nice, I'll have another 20 for lunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keemapoot Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 This humorous Video report by CNN is hilarious on Kim's train travel pomp and circumstance. I love the James Bond Oddjob comparison. https://edition.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/04/24/kim-jong-un-polished-train-moos-pkg-ebof-vpx.cnn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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