Kim-Putin Call Strengthens Alliance in Ukraine Conflict

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call Tuesday to reinforce their growing partnership and discuss their joint efforts in Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to state media reports Wednesday. This call precedes Putin’s planned meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday.

Putin praised the “bravery and heroism” of North Korean troops supporting Russian forces in repelling a Ukrainian incursion in Russia’s Kursk region, North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He also informed Kim about his upcoming talks with Trump, per Russia’s TASS agency, though North Korean reports did not mention this meeting.

Kim affirmed Pyongyang’s full support for Russia’s future actions, highlighting plans to expand ties across all sectors under a strategic partnership agreement from their summit last year, KCNA noted. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Kim has prioritized relations with Moscow to counter diplomatic isolation and challenge Washington.

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North Korea has rejected efforts by Washington and Seoul to resume talks on its nuclear program, which stalled after a failed 2019 summit with Trump. South Korean intelligence reports indicate Pyongyang has sent around 15,000 troops to Russia since last fall, along with significant supplies of artillery and ballistic missiles to aid Putin’s war efforts.

Kim has also agreed to deploy thousands of North Korean military construction workers and deminers to Russia’s Kursk region, with South Korean officials expecting this move to occur soon.

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