Pact with North Korea will protect us both from aggression, says Putin
With updates from Shaimaa Khalil and Jake Kwon in Seoul, Laura Bicker in Beijing, Ben Tavener in Moscow, Jean Mackenzie in Ukraine and Ayeshea Perera, Yvette Tan, Frances Mao, Kelly Ng and Fan Wang in Singapore
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Edited by Flora Drury
All times stated are UK
Kim says North Korea 'fully supports Russia's operation in Ukraine'
We're just getting visuals of the meeting between Putin and Kim, where Kim had earlier claimed that both countries are entering a period of "new prosperity".
Kim also said North Korea intended to strengthen its "strategic co-operation with Russia", according to a report by Russian agency Interfax. Kim also added that he fully supports Russia's "military operation" in Ukraine, the agency said.
North Korean weapons are killing Ukrainians
Jean Mackenzie
Seoul correspondent
The wreckage of an unusual-looking missile that was retrieved in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, has given researchers at the Conflict Armament Research(CAR) with what they consider hard evidence that North Korea is supplying Russia with weapons.
Parts of the shell had a tiny character from the Korean alphabet and the number 112, which corresponds to the year 2023 in the North Korean calendar.
Most of the missile’s electronic parts had been manufactured in the US and Europe over the past few years. There was even a US computer chip made as recently as March 2023.It was this revelation - that North Korea had access to new technology that allowed it to produce weapons at extraordinary speed despite years of crippling sanctions - that startled the organisation.Read more on that discovery here.
Russia and North Korea are entering period of 'new prosperity' - Kim
Earlier, we heard Putin extolling the "firm friendship" between Russia and North Korea at the start of his talks with Kim.
In response, the North Korean leader said the two countries are entering a period of "new prosperity", RIA reported.
Kim also said he "fully supports" Russia's invasion in Ukraine, Russian state media reported, noting that Russia plays a significant role in maintaining the strategic balance in the world.
Watch: More from Kim's red carpet welcome for Putin
More footage from the grand welcome ceremony now.
Putin walked the red carpet in Pyongyang, with surrounding buildings draped in giant Russian and North Korean flags. Crowds cheered as Kim introduced him to the North's military officials.
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Russia-NK relations founded on 'equality' and 'mutual respect' - Putin
Co-operation between Russia and North Korea is "founded on principles of equality and mutual respect for each other's interests", Putin said, according to Russia's Interfax news agency.
"For many decades, firm friendship and close good-neighbourliness have linked Russia and North Korea," he added.
Putin attacks the West again
Putin is once again using this visit to attack the US and its allies - promising to fight against its "hegemonic and imperialist policy" at the start of his talks with Kim today, Russian state media reported.
It closely mirrors his earlier messaging. Ahead of his trip, North Korean state media posted a letter he had penned, vowing to build new trade and security systems "that are not controlled by the West".
He also pledged to support Pyongyang against "US pressure, blackmail and military threats".
Putin invites Kim to Moscow
Putin has invited Kim to Moscow, RIA reported.
The North Korean leader last visited Russia in September 2023 at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East.
Putin announces 'new fundamental document' for Russia-NK ties
Putin announced a "new fundamental document" that will form the basis of ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, Russia's state-run media RIA reported.
"Last year, as a result of your visit to Russia, we made significant progress in building our interstate relations today. A new fundamental document has been prepared today, which will form the basis of our relations for the long term," Putin said.
We'll bring you more details on this document as we get them.
A justified expense for Kim?
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
Kim appears to be spending extensive resources for Putin’s visit - it probably sees the expense as a justified investment.
Apart from the grand welcome parade we have been reporting about, Putin's arrival in Pyongyang brought out a side of the city that locals do not see every day – well-lit buildings and streets.
State television showed Putin's motorcade driving through brightly-lit neighbourhoods, with high-rise buildings fully illuminated in the middle of the night. The 105 storey-tall Ryugyong Hotel glowed with LED lights showing the words, "Welcome Putin" and "Friendship".
North Korea suffers from a chronic electricity shortage as power plants are said to operate at reduced capacity.
Pyongyang residents reportedly prefer to live on lower floors because the lifts are unreliable or have stopped working. Those who live outside the capital are believed to suffer even worse.
Putin thanks Kim for support on "Russian policy"
We're just seeing the first lines from the talks between Putin and Kim.
"We highly appreciate your consistent and unwavering support for Russian policy, including in the Ukrainian direction," Putin said at the start of the talks, according to Russian state-run media RIA.
Watch: Huge crowds gather in Pyongyang to welcome Putin
Here is footage of the crowds of people lining the streets in Pyongyang as Putin's motorcade passed by.
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A 'renaissance' in relations
Joel Guinto
BBC News
Relations between Russia and North Korea appear to be on a level not seen since the time of the Soviet Union, analysts tell the BBC.
Moscow is believed to be getting material support from North Korea for its war in Ukraine while Pyongyang is likely receiving technical support from Russia for its missile program.
“This has led to a level of cooperation - political, economic and military - between the two not seen since the Soviet Era,” says Jenny Town, director of the Washington-based Stimson Center’s Korea Program and 38 North.
“While the sustainability of this relationship is yet to be seen, in the short term, Putin and Kim will reap the benefits of their solidarity in what they have framed as a war against the West,” she says.
By coming together, Putin and Kim are trying to establish an “alternate network” that is beyond the reach of sanctions from the West, says Jeffrey Lewis, a North Korea expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
“The US and others will continue to condemn the cooperation, but aside from sternly worded statements there isn't much more to do,” he added.
Huge welcome for Putin as crowds line the streets throughout Pyongyang
We saw footage of a huge welcome as Putin's motorcade drove through Pyongyang.
An AFP feed showed hundreds of thousands of people lining the streets and waving from buildings.
Some were seen holding flowers and waving Russian and North Korean flags.
Many people were holding umbrellas and wearing hats, while crowds of people were also seen taking shelter from the heat under the trees.
It's hard to say how many of these people were there by choice. North Korea runs a brutal, totalitarian regime where anything short of overt support could have harsh consequences.
Putin and Kim's red-carpeted greetings
Vision coming through now on the pool feed shows us more of the welcome ceremony earlier.
As military bands played, the two leaders walked down the red carpet before greeting a long line of senior officials and dignitaries from both nations.
Both men also stood on ceremony as the band played both countries' anthems.
More photos from the welcome ceremony
Some more photos from the welcome ceremony with videos published by Russian outlet RT.
Footage shows contingents of soldiers gathered. The local military orchestra also played the national anthems of the two nations, with artillery guns firing a welcoming salvo.
RT claims: "The square is packed with local residents, who came to greet the Russian president."
Footage certainly shows choreographed reaction from assembled North Koreans, carrying pompoms and Russian flags and bursting into cheers at points.
It’s not all red carpet and red roses
Shaimaa Khalil
in Seoul
Aside from the many opportunities for the two isolated leaders to show their unity to the world, more questions are being raised about what Putin’s visit could yield in practical terms.
The two leaders have just begun official talks and each has an urgent shopping list for the other. North Korea’s depleted economy needs money, fuel and food. Kim also wants advanced military technology for his spy satellites.
Russia needs to replenish its munition stockpile for the war in Ukraine. Pyongyang is in a position to offer plenty of that – and despite denials – it has already done so according to both Washington and Seoul.
Analysts here think they might sign a joint declaration on elevated levels of co-operation, but without going so as far as to revive the Soviet-era Friendship Treaty.
There are limits to what each leader can provide considering the heavy sanctions they are facing and what China - their mutual benefactor - will allow.
This visit is about how much they can get from each other within those limitations.
BreakingTalks between Putin and Kim begin
Putin and Kim have started talks, according to Russian news agency Interfax.
Who else is at the welcome ceremony?
We are getting the first visuals of the North Korean and Russian delegations at Kim Il Sung square.
Among the North Korean delegation is Kim's sister, Kim Yo Jong. She has on occasion been dubbed the most powerful woman in North Korea - holding a senior position in the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, and reportedly having influence on her brother.
Choe Son Hui - Kim's top negotiator and Foreign Minister - can also be seen in the line-up.
From the Russian delegation, we know that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak are among those accompanying Putin in Pyongyang, though they cannot be seen in this photo.
How is China reacting to this visit?
China, which has close ties with both Russia and North Korea, have "welcomed" the summit between Putin and Kim.
Putin visited China a month ago, when he declared that he and China's Xi Jinping were "as close as brothers".
In response to a question about Putin's Pyongyang visit, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Thursday that Beijing "welcomes Russia to cement and grow ties with countries they have traditional friendship with".
And just this morning, state media Global Times ran an article citing Chinese analysts saying that it is a "rational choice" for Moscow and Pyongyang to move closer.
"The long-standing strategy of the US and its allies to isolate and suppress the two countries will automatically push them to work together to deal with the common threat from US-led alliances," it says.
BreakingPutin and Kim arrive at Kim Il Sung square for welcome ceremony
Russia's Vladimir Putin and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un have arrived at Pyongyang's central square - the Kim ll Sung square, named after North Korea's founding leader, says Russian state agency RIA.
The agency added that the "solemn welcome ceremony in honor of [Putin's] visit has begun".