North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin held their rare talks at Russia’s Vostochny space center Wednesday amid concerns that the two isolated leaders may advance an arms negotiation and bolster military cooperation.

With the participation of delegations, Kim and Putin began talks at the spaceport in Russia’s Amur region, after they shook hands and greeted each other for their first meeting in more than four years, according to Russian news media.

“(North Korea’s) relations with Russia are the top priority of Pyongyang,” Kim was quoted as saying at the start of the talks, adding the invitation came at a very important time.

Kim told Putin his country will work together with Russia to “fight against imperialism,” adding that he is supportive of “all decisions” made by Putin in an apparent reference to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Putin said he hopes to talk about economic cooperation, security situations on the Korean Peninsula and humanitarian issues, according to Russian news agencies.

In the run-up to the talks, Putin gave Kim a tour of the Vostochny Cosmodrome. The leaders also began a one-on-one meeting after holding the talks in an extended format.

The Kremlin earlier said Putin and Kim would touch on bilateral ties and economic cooperation during the summit, but added their talks may involve sensitive issues that would not be made available publicly.

Speculations have risen that military cooperation would likely be discussed, as Russia apparently needs North Korea’s supplies of artillery shells and ammunition for its war with Ukraine, while the North wants high-tech weapons technology from Russia.

Putin said “all issues” will be discussed during their talks, when asked by reporters if he plans to touch on military and technical cooperation.

The Russian president also noted Kim has shown “great interest” in rocket technology, pledging to help the recalcitrant regime build its own satellite. North Korea made attempts in May and August to place a military spy satellite into an orbit, but they ended in failure.

After departing from Pyongyang by armored train Sunday, the North Korean leader arrived at the rocket launch facility earlier in the day, traveling more than 1,000 kilometers north of the eastern Russian city of Vladivostok, where they previously met in 2019.

Photos carried by the North’s state media showed that Kim was accompanied by the North’s top party and military officials, including military marshals Ri Pyong-chol and Pak Jong-chon, and Pak Thae-song, an official in charge of space technology.

The makeup of his entourage and the selection of Russia’s space facility as the venue for talks spawn speculation that North Korea may agree to supply Russia with ammunition and weaponry for its war in Ukraine. In return, North Korea may want food aid and a weapons technology transfer from Moscow, such as those involving spy satellites and nuclear-powered submarines.

If Kim and Putin also agree to strengthen their military cooperation, including a three-way naval drill with China, it would pose a major security challenge on the Korean Peninsula and beyond.

Any arms deal between Pyongyang and Moscow constitutes a violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions that prohibit any arms trade with North Korea.

Their meeting comes as Pyongyang has recently been seeking to bolster military ties with Moscow and doubling down on its weapons development in the wake of growing security cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan.

Kim earlier said his trip to Russia for a meeting with Putin is a “clear manifestation” of North Korea prioritizing the “strategic importance” of their bilateral ties, according to the North’s Korean Central News Agency.

In an apparent show of force, the North fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea shortly before Kim and Putin’s meeting Wednesday, South Korea’s military said.

North Korea pledged to launch a third spy satellite in October after its previous two thwarted attempts and recently unveiled what it claimed to be a tactical nuclear-attack submarine.

Source: Yonhap News Agency