Ukraine war latest: Putin and Kim sign new defence deal - as UK says 'bizarre scenes' should be warning (2024)

By Ivor Bennett, Moscow correspondent

There are two schools of thoughts regarding why Vladimir Putin is in North Korea.

One is that Russia doesn't really have any other options right now. Its ongoing invasion of Ukraine has left it isolated from the West, and forced to pivot east. The visit to Pyongyang, and the world's most isolated state, is a reflection of Moscow's desperation, some say.

The opposing view is that Russia does have a lot of options right now. They're talking to Cuba, China, even the Taliban. So others believe this is a calculated move to show what's possible when the West, in Russia's eyes, oversteps the mark.

"Putin is angry," according to Chris Monday, an associate professor at Busan's Dongseo University, in reference to NATO allies, including the UK, giving Ukraine permission to use their weapons to strike inside Russia.

"He feels, from his perspective, that the West has crossed many red lines and he wants to put his foot down."

Either way, whether Russia's leader is going cap-in-hand or shaking his fist, the West will be alarmed at what these closer ties could mean.

There's an assumption in Washington that North Korea is already sending Russia ammunition to use in Ukraine, and there's a concern, articulated by US secretary of state Antony Blinken, that trade will increase.

Beyond that, there's also a fear about what North Korea will get in return - could Moscow pass on aid for Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programmes?

Both sides deny this, but one could argue the agreement they signed today sends the opposite signal.

The "comprehensive strategic partnership pact" includes a mutual defence clause, in case of "aggression", as Mr Putin put it, against either party.

He also said Russia doesn't rule out the "development" of military-technical cooperation between the two. Ominous words for the West, and South Korea especially.

"People are very concerned here," said Mr Monday.

"There's more and more talk, for example, of developing a South Korean nuclear weapon.

"A year ago it seemed an impossibility, but now this is something people talk about."

This isn't how the visit is being talked about on Russian state media, of course. The main talking point has been Mr Putin's warm reception.

"Putin has never been met like this before," gushed one tabloid headline.

"For the sake of meeting Vladimir Vladimirovich, they gathered almost half of the capital," the article continued.

It certainly looked like that - crowds of apparently jubilant North Koreans, waving Russian flags in front of a giant portrait of their guest.

If the US president is seen as the leader of the free world, it feels like Vladimir Putin is being heralded here as the leader of the sanctioned world.

Watch: Mr Kim's ceremonial welcome for Mr Putin...

Ukrainian agriculture has lost $10bn (£7.8bn) in the two years since Russia's invasion, its acting agrarian minister has said.

Losses include the destruction of machinery, costing $5.8bn (£4.5bn), and damage to animal farms, costingmore than $250m (£196m).

"Global food prices grew approximately 35% in 2022," Taras Vysotsky, the minister, said.

"The situation did not stabilise until new export routes were created. So, the Ukrainian agrarian sector needs support to recover."

Mr Vysotsky said long-term projects supporting farming were needed, including financial support provided through the EU Ukraine Facility, a financial instrument dedicated to helping Ukraine.

Once his business in North Korea is wrapped up, Vladimir Putin will quickly be on the move to Vietnam, where he is scheduled to visit for the next two days.

The country is preparing to host the Russian leader, who is expected to arrive later tonight in Hanoi.

Pictures from the country show seamstresses making Russian flags that will line the streets and a motorcade during a security rehearsal near the Hotel Metropole, where Mr Putin is expected to stay.

Vladimir Putin has been photographed driving Kim Jong Un around in a luxury Russian-built Aurus limousine during his visit to Pyongyang today.

The Russian leader presented Mr Kim with a limousine, a tea set and an admiral's dirk, a type of dagger, according to Russia's state news agency TASS.

Mr Putin's visit, which comes as both nations face international isolation, is being watched closely by Seoul and Washington, which have expressed concern about their growing military ties.

Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have signed a new deal today that includes a vow of mutual aid if either country is attacked.

The agreement, which the leaders said covered areas including security, trade, investment and cultural and humanitarian ties, could mark the strongest connection between Moscow and Pyongyang since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

Both leaders described it as a major upgrade of their ties.

During their meeting today, Mr Kim said: "The relationship between our two countries is at the highest point and incomparable to relations between the DPRK and the Soviet Union."

You can watch what Mr Kim said about the Russian leader's visit below...

Kim Jong Un has described the new deal struck between North Korea and Russia as "peaceful and defensive".

Mr Kim has spent today hosting Vladimir Putin in Pyongyang where the two held lengthy talks.

The Russian president said world affairs and the global agenda dominated the pair's conversation.

Mr Kim described his Russian counterpart as "the dearest friend of the Korean people", saying that "at this moment, when the whole world is paying close attention to Pyongyang, where the friendship mission from Russia has arrived, I stand with Russian comrades - our most honest friends and comrades".

Earlier, North Korea rolled out the red carpet for Mr Putin upon his arrival, with a welcome ceremony in Pyongyang before the two leaders exchanged lavish gifts (see 9.41am post).

Mr Putin later laid a wreath at a monument to soldiers of the Soviet Union who died liberating the Korean Peninsula from Japanese occupation.

A former CIA analyst has branded Vladimir Putin's trip to North Korea as "pretty pathetic".

The Russian president has had the red carpet treatment in Pyongyang as he holds talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

One of the key outcomes of the trip is a new agreement signed between the two nations that vows to protect each other in the event of invasion.

For Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA analyst who is now a director at the Wilson Center thinktank, Mr Putin's visit to Pyongyang highlights how two "pariah states" are cementing their ties despite their isolation from the international community.

"I think it is pretty pathetic that Putin has to resort to relying on [the] 198th-ranked economy in the world to help his war effort," she told BBC News.

"It's all around bad news for the rest of the world."

By Nicole Johnston, Asia correspondent, in Beijing

Anytime Vladimir Putin leaves Russia it is significant because he rarely gets out. But this trip - visiting the secretive and closed off country of North Korea for the first time in 24 years - underscores just how important the relationship between these countries has become.

Russia and North Korea have signed a strategic partnership to upgrade their relationship. While it's light on detail this deal will be closely watched in Asia, especially here in China.

China shares a long border with North Korea - it's been the hermit kingdom's main supporter and is responsible for 90% of North Korea's trade.

Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, also has a strong relationship with Russia, buying its oil and gas andsending so-called "dual use" machinery and semi-conductors to Russia, which the West says Russia uses in its war in Ukraine.

China does not want to see Russia muscling in on its traditional area of influence in North Korea.

Just yesterday senior officials from China and South Korea held talks in Seoul, where China said “maintaining peace and stability on the peninsula is in the common interest of all parties”.

Mr Xi does agree with Russia and North Korea on one point, however - that there should be a new world order, a "multipolar" world, rather than the US-dominated international system.

The problem is, China wants to be at the centre of this alternative order and seen as a responsible global leader. It risks reputational damage if the multipolar bloc appears to be largely comprised of countries the West regards as pariah states, such as Russia, North Korea and Iran.

South Korea is also anxious about Mr Putin's trip to Pyongyang.

It could embolden Mr Kim to have a strongman by his side at a time when tension on the Korean Peninsula is high. Both North and South Korea have stepped up their campaigns of cross border harassment in recent weeks.

The North has been sending balloons with rubbish across the border, and activists in the south have sent balloons with propaganda leaflets.

Mr Putin next heads to Vietnam, which has a different set of issues. Vietnam is emblematic of a Southeast Asian country trying to stay close to the US, Russia and China. It doesn't want to be forced to make a choice.

But in this fractured international environment, divided between the West and developing countries of the "Global South", Vietnam and its neighbour may find that eventually they will have to pick a side.

Watch: North Korea's rubbish balloons explained

Drone attacks by Russia have damaged energy infrastructure in central Ukraine andinjured at least two people in the western region of Lviv,the authorities have said.

Emergency services were sent to the sites of theattacks and repairs to damaged electrical equipment in Lviv are under way, Ukraine's energy ministry said on Telegram.

Russian forces launched five drones at Lviv, injuring two men, who were hit by debris, according to regional governor Maksym Kozytskyi.

It was part of a wider drone attack launched by Russia last night (see 9.10am post).

The attack in the village of Malekhiv in the Lviv citydistrict damaged a block of flats, as well as scores of windows in other residential buildings, mayor Andriy Sadovyi wrote on Telegram.

The attack also damaged a veterinary drugs researchinstitute, Mr Sadovyi said.

Sky News could not independently verify the reports.

Russia and North Korea have signed a new agreement, vowing to help each other in case of invasionas both face escalating stand-offs with the West.

"The comprehensive partnership agreement signed today provides, among other things, mutual assistance in the event of aggression against one of the parties to this agreement," Vladimir Putin was quoted as saying by state news agency TASS.

Mr Kim called Russia "the most honest friend and ally" and referred to Mr Putin "the dearest friend of the Korean people", according to a report by state agency RIA.

The agreement, which replaces previous treaties between the countries from 1961 and 2000-2001, includes a mutual defence clause under which each country agrees to help the other in case of attack.

Yuri Ushakov, a Russian presidential assistant, said the pact was needed because of "the deep evolution of the geopolitical situation in the world and the region".