North Korea’s Kim Jong Un inspects Russian bombers and a warship on a visit to Russia’s Far East
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected Russia’s nuclear-capable bombers, hypersonic missiles and an advanced warship from its Pacific fleet on Saturday as he continued a trip in Russia’s Far East that has sparked Western concerns about an arms alliance that could fuel President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine.
After arriving in the city of Artyom by train, Kim traveled to an airport just outside the port city of Vladivostok where Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and other senior military officials gave him an up-close look at Russia’s strategic bombers and other warplanes.
ADVERTISING
All the Russian warplanes shown to Kim on Saturday were among the types that have seen active use in the war in Ukraine, including the Tu-160, Tu-95 and Tu-22 bombers that have regularly launched cruise missiles.
Shoigu and Lt. Gen. Sergei Kobylash, the commander of the Russian long-range bomber force, explained to Kim that the Tu-160 had recently received new cruise missiles with a range of more than 6,500 kilometers (over 4,040 miles). Pointing at the weapons bay, Shoigu said that each bomber carries 12 missiles.
Russian officials have previously said that the new missile was under development, and the latest comments confirmed its deployment for the first time.
Shoigu, who had met Kim during a rare visit to North Korea in July, also showed Kim another of Russia’s latest missiles, the hypersonic Kinzhal, carried by the MiG-31 fighter jet, that saw its first combat during the war in Ukraine, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry.
Kim and Shoigu later traveled to Vladivostok, where they inspected the Admiral Shaposhnikov frigate. Russia’s navy commander, Adm. Nikolai Yevmenov, briefed Kim on the ship’s capabilities and weapons, which include long-range Kalibr cruise missiles that Russian warships have regularly fired at targets in Ukraine.
Kim’s visits to military and technology sites this week possibly hint at what he wants from Russia, perhaps in exchange for supplying munitions to refill Putin’s declining reserves as his invasion of Ukraine becomes a drawn-out war of attrition.
Videos released by Russia’s Defense Ministry showed Shoigu greeting Kim at the airport along with honor guards lined up near a red carpet.
