Putin’s North Korea Visit: Dates, Impact, and Regional Reactions

Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to arrive in Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital for a visit to Kim Jong Un. The visit is set to be as soon as next week although the exact dates of the visit and the duration is not yet disclosed. 

Impact of the Visit on regional politics –

The news of the visit has sent the top officials in South Korea and US defence sectors in panic mode. South Korea’s vice foreign minister, Kim Hong Kyun, in an emergency phone call with US deputy secretary of state, Kurt Campbell discussed the matter and said that Putin’s visit should not result in more militarised cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang as that can lead escalations of conflict in the South East Asian region and be alarming for Seoul.

Considering the challenges and threats that the trip possesses, Washington and Seoul are conducting meetings and discussions are underway for beefing up the security and the pacific fleets of the US Navy can be an x factor in this. 

On Wednesday, Seoul’s Presidential Office said Putin is expected to visit North Korea in the next few weeks. According to Russian Newspaper, Vedomosti, Putin would visit N.Korea and Vietnam in the coming weeks.

Russian and N.Korean Statement on the Forthcoming Visit

Kremlin’s spokesperson Dmitry Pescov on Thursday said in a statement that although the North Korea visit is for developing closer ties with Pyongyang for Moscow but that has to be not taken as a signal for escalating conflict anywhere.

On the other hand, North Korea’s vice foreign minister Kim Son Gyong, in a statement accused the United States of “a serious political provocation at tarnishing” North Korea’s image by calling in and holding a UN security council meeting on its human rights situation this week.