In the days leading up to the Friday summit with Donald Trump in Alaska, Russian President Vladimir Putin has launched a diplomatic offensive by calling the leaders of the most influential countries on the global stage who have refused to isolate Russia despite Western sanctions for the invasion of Ukraine.
From Chinese Xi Jinping to Indian Narendra Modi, Brazilian Lula da Silva, and South African Cyril Ramaphosa, the Russian autocrat has had lengthy phone conversations with all of them. But the call to the country that has truly been Moscow's great military ally was still pending.
On Tuesday night, the Kremlin revealed that Putin had spoken with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to update him on the first meeting that the Russian will have with Trump. In addition to "sharing information" regarding negotiations on Ukraine, Moscow highlighted that Putin praised the support of Pyongyang's troops during the war.
On Wednesday, Kim's regime provided more details about this call. "Putin praised the bravery and heroism of North Korean soldiers in reclaiming the Russian region of Kursk," stated the state-run KCNA agency, adding that the Russian leader told his North Korean counterpart that he "greatly appreciated" North Korea's support and the "spirit of self-sacrifice" shown by its soldiers.
"Kim expressed his sincere gratitude to Putin and said that North Korea will always remain faithful to the spirit of the mutual defense treaty signed by the parties last year, as well as fully support all measures taken by the Russian leadership in the future," continued the statement from the North Korean propaganda outlet.
This has been the latest reaffirmation of the military alliance between Moscow and Pyongyang after, last July, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited the Asian country and met with Kim. The North Korean leader assured him that his country would continue its "unconditional support" to Russia.
In recent years, these trips by senior Russian officials to strengthen ties with Pyongyang have been routine, as North Korea supplies thousands of troops and ammunition to Russia in exchange for economic assistance and military technology for the development of the nuclear and ballistic missile program.
Lavrov's visit followed another trip in June by Russia's top security official, Sergei Shoigu, who met with Kim before announcing that Pyongyang would send thousands of military construction and demining workers to the Russian region of Kursk to help rebuild the area devastated by war.
Under the mutual defense agreement signed in June 2024 between Putin and Kim, the North Korean regime deployed over 11,000 soldiers to fight on the Kursk front. According to a new intelligence assessment from South Korea earlier this summer, the North is preparing to triple the number of soldiers fighting for Moscow: between 25,000 and 30,000 additional troops that will arrive in Russia in the coming months.