Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that visiting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would oversee a display of the potential of Russian warships in the Far East.
“There is also a military component in Vladivostok, on the lines of the defence ministry, but it is simply to demonstrate the capabilities of the Pacific Fleet,” Putin told state-run media.
His comments came following talks between the leaders at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in eastern Russia, near the Chinese and North Korean border.
Kim will visit the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, as well as the Russian Academy of Sciences, including laboratories researching marine biology, Putin said.
Before Vladivostok, Kim will go to Komsomolsk-on-Amur, an important industrial centre.
“(Kim) will visit factories where civilian and combat aviation equipment is produced,” Putin said on television.
His visit comes as US officials and experts have said Russia is interested in buying North Korean ammunition to use in the conflict in Ukraine — an arms deal that would defy global sanctions.
