Kim meets Russia's top diplomat in Pyongyang
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met the top Russian diplomat in Pyongyang on Thursday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met the top Russian diplomat in Pyongyang on Thursday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said, Yonhap reports.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in North Korea on the day amid a flurry of diplomacy under way between the North and the United States ahead of their leaders' historic summit.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was received by Chairman of the State Affairs Commission Kim Jong-un," the ministry said in a statement, according to the TASS news agency.
Lavrov conveyed a message to Kim from Russian President Vladimir Putin in which Putin expressed "best wishes" for the success of the recent diplomacy set in motion to resolve issues related to the Korean Peninsula.
TASS reported Lavrov also invited Kim to visit Russia, quoting the foreign minister as saying, "Come to Russia, we will be very pleased to welcome you."
Lavrov is the first Russian foreign minister to visit North Korea in nine years.
Lavrov and his counterpart Ri Yong-ho discussed bilateral ties as the two countries celebrate the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations this year, the ministry added.
He welcomed contacts between North and South Korea and a summit that the North is planning to hold with the U.S. but called for a "delicate" approach to prevent the current process from falling apart.
We call on all the parties involved to fully realize their responsibility for preventing the failure of such an important but fragile process," TASS quoted Lavrov as saying after his talks with Ri.
His visit comes as the North is preparing for an unprecedented summit between its leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump, which will likely take place in Singapore on June 12.
The Korean Central News Agency also reported that Lavrov paid tribute to late North Korean founder Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, father of the current leader, by laying flowers at their statues on Mansu Hill.
Source: Kazinform News Agency
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