North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Russia today by armored train, where he is supposed to discuss "sensitive issues" with its president, Vladimir Putin.
Putin, who is at the economic forum in Vladivostok, did not want to answer the question about what he will discuss with Kim.
"I have my agenda there. When I get there, you'll know," he told the conference moderator.
The media speculate that the leaders could meet at the Vostochny Cosmodrome, in the far east of Russia, near the border with China.
The North Korean leader was expected to arrive in Vladivostok, but his train went north, and the route cannot be determined by satellite.
The Japanese news agency Kyodo, citing "sources close to the Russian authorities", reports that the train is heading north, towards Russia's Amur region, where the Vostochny cosmodrome is located.
South Korea's KBS World also reported that "observers" consider the spaceport a possible meeting place for Kim and Putin as Kim's train traveled north from Vladivostok.
The meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome would be symbolic given the North Korean leader's interest in launching satellites into space, said Gabriela Bernal, a South Korea University researcher on North Korean studies.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin and Kim would meet after the forum in Vladivostok and that the meeting would include a lunch in Kim's honor.
Kim spent more than 20 hours traveling 1.200 kilometers in a fully armored train - from the windows to the walls to the floor as protection against bullets and explosives. Due to the weight of this protection, the locomotive pulls it at a speed of about 50 kilometers per hour.
The train is also equipped with assault weapons and has a helicopter for emergency situations, and heavily armed security guards are on board, while others search the track and upcoming stations for bombs and other hazards.
North Korea's outdated railway network is also to blame for the length of the trip that Kim embarked on for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
At the border, the train had to replace the train with wheels because the rails in Russia are wider.
Kim is expected to ask Putin for economic aid and military technology for his impoverished country and, in an unusual twist, he has what Putin desperately needs: ammunition for Russia's war in Ukraine.
The meeting is an opportunity for the North Korean leader to bypass UN sanctions and years of diplomatic isolation. For Putin, it is an opportunity to replenish ammunition stocks, writes the Associated Press (AP).
Any arms deal with North Korea would violate sanctions, which Russia once supported.
French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre said today that Kim's visit to Russia shows Moscow's international isolation due to its invasion of Ukraine.
"Russia is isolated to the extent that it is forced to turn to North Korea. This is a very strong sign of its international isolation," Legendre told reporters.
Kim is believed to be accompanied by Jo Chun Ryong, a ruling party official in charge of ammunition supply who accompanied Kim on recent visits to artillery shell and missile factories.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu will be part of the Russian delegation during the meeting, Peskov said.
North Korea may have tens of millions of outdated Soviet-based artillery shells and rockets that would bolster the supply of Russia's military in Ukraine, analysts say.
Photos of Kim's entourage include Pak Tae Song, chairman of North Korea's Space Science and Technology Committee, and Navy Admiral Kim Myong Sik. They are linked to North Korea's efforts to acquire spy satellites and submarines with nuclear ballistic missiles.
Experts say North Korea would have a hard time acquiring such capabilities without outside help, but it is unclear whether Russia would give it such sensitive technology.
Analysts say that Kim can ask Russia for energy and food that his country desperately needs.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrey Rudenko said that Russia could discuss humanitarian aid, according to Russian news agencies.
Kim's delegation is likely to include his Foreign Minister Choe Sun Hui and his two top military officials, Korean People's Army Marshals Ri Pyong-chol and Park Jong-chon.
After decades of hot and cold relations, Russia and North Korea have grown closer since the start of Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
When Kim last met Putin in 2019, he also arrived by train in Vladivostok in the Russian Far East.
In recent years, North Korea has tested ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles that can fly at several times the speed of sound and at low altitudes to avoid radar.
In April, it tested what it called its "most powerful" missile – the Hwasong-18. It is estimated that its range is more than 15.000 kilometers, writes the BBC.
Last July, a second test showed that the Hwasong-18 reached the required altitude of over 6.600 km, with a flight time of 74 minutes.
In November 2022, an intercontinental ballistic missile that could reach the US mainland was tested, according to the Japanese government.
In 2022, North Korea tested a record number of missiles, including ones capable of reaching the US territory.
Bonus video:
