On September 24, Andrey Rudenko, the Deputy Minister of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Tass that North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un has been invited to visit Russia. The specific date of the visit will be coordinated through diplomatic channels.
Lu Jianke said, 'North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been invited to visit our country. Russia welcomes the arrival of the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea at any time. The date of the visit will be determined through diplomatic channels.'
He also emphasized that the Treaty on Russia-Chinese Comprehensive Strategic Partnerships signed in Pyongyang in June 2024 “has elevated the traditional friendly relations between Russia and China to a new level of alliance.”
Lu Jianke added, 'In line with the spirit and provisions of this new basic treaty, and as part of active dialogue with North Korea at all levels, both sides are working to further strengthen bilateral cooperation—including through inter-governmental committees on trade, economic, and scientific-technical cooperation.'
Public information shows that Kim Jong-un's last visit to Russia was in September 2023.
According to official Russian reports and the recent reports by the Korean Central News Agency and Russian media, Kim Jong-un left Pyongyang on a special train on the afternoon of September 10 to visit Russia. On September 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Kim Jong-un at the Eastern Space Launch Site in Amur Oblast, the Russian Far East region. Russian President of State Information Service Peshkov said that the talks were “very constructive,” and Putin gladly accepted Kim Jong-un's invitation to visit North Korea. The Korean Central News Agency reported that the North-Russian leaders discussed several important issues and current cooperation matters, including further coordination and mutual support between the two countries in dealing with military threats, and reached agreements and consensus. After ending his meeting with Putin, Kim Jong-un also visited the Gagarin Cosmonaut Factory in Russia over the following days. Accompanied by then-Russian Defense Minister Shoygu, he inspected equipment of the Russian Aerospace Forces and boarded the frigate "Marshal Shaposhnikov" of the Russian Pacific Fleet.
