Kim vows deeper North Korea-Russia cooperation in message to Putin

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to expand and deepen "joint work" with Moscow in a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, state media reported Tuesday, amid the two nations' strengthening military and economic ties.

Kim expressed his "deep" thanks to Putin in a reply to the Russian president's recent congratulatory message marking North Korea's 78th founding anniversary that fell on Sept. 9, according to Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

North Korea's will remains "firm without doubt to expand and deepen the joint work with the Russian Federation in a comprehensive way [...] based on the tradition of friendship, good neighborliness and mutual aids and the firm relations of alliance between the two countries," the letter showed.

He did not specify what the "joint work" meant, but it appeared to point to deepening military and economic cooperation between North Korea and Russia.

The North's leader said the two countries were continuously "writing a new biography of the great history of alliance" in the face of an "uneven historical storm" and promised unwavering support for Russia in its war against Ukraine, the KCNA showed.

North Korea and Russia signed the comprehensive strategic partnership treaty during Putin's state visit to Pyongyang in June 2024. The treaty calls for providing military assistance "without delay" if either side is attacked.

Pyongyang has sent thousands of troops and conventional weapons to Russia to help support its war against Ukraine.

Yonhap