It would be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s first trip to North Korea in more than two decades,after he visited Kim Jong-il – current leader Kim Jong-un’s father – in 2000.
The North Korean leader has declared the South an enemy to be subjugated,through nuclear war if necessary,and has dismantled all agencies dedicated to diplomacy.
The cooperation outlined by the South would mark a new phase of Kim’s assistance for Russian President Vladimir Putin in his war on Ukraine.
Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has vowed North Korea will launch three new spy satellites,build military drones and boost its nuclear arsenal in 2024.
North Korea said Seoul would be held “wholly accountable” if an irretrievable clash breaks out between the two countries.
South Korea and the US said military co-operation between North Korea and Russia would violate UN sanctions against Pyongyang and there would be a price to pay.
Kim Jong-un does not travel abroad much,having made just seven trips away and twice stepping briefly across the inter-Korean border in his 12 years in power.
Like his father and grandfather,the North Korean leader has predominantly travelled internationally in a specially manufactured train – an unusual mode of transport for a 21st-century world leader.
Cameras with facial recognition technology have made freedom even more elusive for North Koreans who have managed to cross the border into China.
North Korea is deeply opposed to the annual military drills involving the US and South Korea,which it considers practice runs for an invasion.
It’s the regime’s first official confirmation of detention of Private 2nd Class Travis King,who bolted across the border while on a tour on July 18.