Choe Son-hui of North Korea Visits Russia, Foreign Ministers' Meeting Scheduled for the 16th

On October 19 last year, at the meeting between the foreign ministers of North Korea and Russia, Choe Son-hui, North Korean Foreign Minister, and Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, are shaking hands. [Chosun Central TV screen] [Image source=Yonhap News]

The foreign ministers of North Korea and Russia are scheduled to hold talks on the 16th (local time).

Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, stated to TASS on the 15th that the North Korea-Russia foreign ministers' meeting is "scheduled to take place tomorrow."

Earlier, the North Korean Workers' Party organ, Rodong Sinmun, reported on the same day that a government delegation led by North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui departed Pyongyang on the 14th for an official visit to Russia.

In an interview with Russia's state broadcaster Rossiya 1 the previous day, spokesperson Zakharova said, "There will be negotiations during Foreign Minister Choe's visit to Russia, and there will be more speculation," adding, "We are not violating anything."

The phrase "We are not violating anything" is interpreted as a denial of recent allegations that Russia used weapons illegally supplied by North Korea in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister Choe, visiting Russia at the invitation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, will carry out her official visit schedule until the 17th.

During this North Korea-Russia foreign ministers' meeting, discussions are likely to cover not only military cooperation between North Korea and Russia but also the schedule for Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to North Korea. President Putin accepted an invitation from North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un to visit North Korea during the North Korea-Russia summit held in Russia's Far East last September.

Additionally, there is interest in whether Foreign Minister Choe will meet President Putin in Russia. Minister Lavrov visited Pyongyang in October last year and met Chairman Kim.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.