But he insisted that Pyongyang needs guarantees of its security and sovereignty, and took a veiled swipe at Washington for trying to strong-arm North Kore
Russian President Putin welcomes North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vladivostok on Thursday. Pic/AFP
Russia's Vladimir Putin and North Korea's Kim Jong Un met for their first-ever summit on Thursday, vowing to seek closer ties as they look to counter US influence. Putin emerged from the talks saying that like the US, Russia supports efforts to reduce tensions on the Korean peninsula and prevent nuclear conflicts.
But he insisted that Pyongyang needs guarantees of its security and sovereignty, and took a veiled swipe at Washington for trying to strong-arm North Korea. "We need to... return to a state where international law, not the law of the strongest, determines the situation in the world," Putin said.
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The summit in Russia's Vladivostok came with Kim locked in a nuclear stand-off with Washington and Putin keen to put Moscow forward as a player in another global flashpoint. In brief statements before their meeting, both men said they were looking to strengthen ties that date back to the Soviet Union's support for the founder of North Korea, Kim's grandfather Kim Il Sung.
Kim said he hoped to turn the modern ties with Moscow into a "more stable and sound one" while Putin said the visit would give a boost to diplomatic and economic ties. The meeting was Kim's first with another head of state since returning from his Hanoi summit with US President Donald Trump in February.
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