By Sydney Dalske
September 11, it is reported that Kim Jong Un’s bullet train was seen on its way to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. This is the first official confirmation of a meeting between the two countries’ leaders. Lots of the meeting is shrouded in secrecy, including in location and time of occurrence.
The trip is the North Korean dictator’s first overseas trip in 4 years. The most recent was his trip in 2019 to South Korea to meet with former US president Donald Trump and former South Korean president Moon-Jae. But early Monday, his train was seen leaving Pyongyang heading towards Russia.
Putin reportedly was seen arriving in the city of Vladivostok, where the two leaders first met and are suspected to be meeting for this now. US officials believe that this meeting could be about a sale of munitions to Moscow in order to replenish supplies for the war in Ukraine.
The war between Russia and Ukraine has been active ever since 2014 but escalated when the Russians invaded in February of 2022. This war is still ongoing today, with Russia having obtained multiple Ukrainian territories. But forming an alliance with the military power house North Korea could change the balance of this long conflict.
In this conflict, Russia is increasingly in need of more supplies due to how isolated it is on the world stage. The meeting between the two leaders could possibly lead to North Korea also obtaining military intelligence. It has previously been barred from access by the United Nations.
This meeting goes in direct conflict with a lot of restrictions set for both countries by the United Nations and could have global consequences. US officials restricted their comments about the meeting to only acknowledging the fact that arms agreements are advancing between the two adversaries. But Adrienne Watson, a National Security Council spokesperson, said that they are urging the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea “to cease arms negotiations with Russia and abide by public commitments”.
Despite the previous sanctions from the UN, for the past two years Kim Jong Un has continued to develop ballistic missiles that possibly could deliver a nuclear warhead over the US mainland. That is one major reason why an arms deal being struck between the two nations could lead to putting not only Ukraine in further danger but also the US
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