Putin to visit North Korea amid tensions and secretive talks

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced that Vladimir Putin will soon travel to North Korea at Kim Jong Un's invitation. He emphasized that the Russian leader's visit is currently "being prepared."

Radio Liberty first reported about Vladimir Putin's possible trip to North Korea at the end of January. Then, it was recalled that in September 2023, Kim Jong Un visited Russia. Subsequently, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Pyongyang a month later.

On Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the reports that had been surfacing in recent months. "President Putin has an active invitation for an official visit to North Korea. The visit is being prepared. We will announce the dates of the trip in due course," he stated.

Russia and North Korea have grown closer since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Pyongyang was accused of sending critical weapons to Moscow. Both countries are subject to significant Western sanctions.

Four Russian sources claim that Putin is ready to freeze the war in Ukraine, Reuters reported on Friday. Informants emphasized that the dictator could negotiate a ceasefire while recognizing the current front line. Formally, this means that the Russians would not withdraw from the areas they captured after the brutal invasion in 2022.

Kyiv, however, previously noted that negotiations would begin when Moscow agreed to return to the status quo before the war broke out.

Three Russian sources contacted by Reuters indicated that Putin "expressed frustration" during talks with his advisers, arguing about—as propagandistically stated— "Western-backed attempts to stymie negotiations." The dictator also pointed to Volodymyr Zelensky's statement that he would not engage in peace talks with Moscow as long as Putin remains in power.