North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s meeting with Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in Pyongyang on Wednesday during the latter’s visit to the country has generated a lot of curiosity in the highly volatile region and also triggered an alarm in the West.

In pictures that have now gone viral on social media, Kim Jong Un is seen taking Shoigu on a tour of a defence exhibition in the North Korean capital that showcased country’s military arsenal, including ballistic missiles and latest drones.

BREAKING: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un showed Russia’s defense chief Shoigu around a weapons expo featuring the country’s latest and largest nuclear missiles, according to state media Thursday pic.twitter.com/3kVmFe08Mz

— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) July 26, 2023

Several top commanders of the Korean People’s Army along with top officials of the Ministry of National Defence also joined Kim Jong Un and Shoigu-led Russian delegation as they took a close look at the weapons and combat technology equipment developed by North Korea.

Kim Jong-un showed Sergei Shoigu new North Korean UAVs similar to the American RQ-4 Global Hawk and MQ-9 Reaper drones. pic.twitter.com/eGcZ58IVYr

— senore_amore (@SenoreAmore) July 27, 2023

Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim Jong Un and Russian Defence Minister discussed issues related to “global and regional security” while other topics of conversation are not specified. Shoigu, who presented Kim with a letter from Russian President Vladimir Putin and also a gift, is scheduled to attend a military parade on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War.

“Comrade Kim Jong-un had a chat with Comrade Sergei Shoigu and expressed his views on issues of mutual interest in the struggle to defend the sovereignty and development interests of the two countries against the high-handedness and arbitrariness of the imperialists and to realize international justice and peace,” stated a KCNA report.

Russian Defense Minister Shoigu has arrived in North Korea:

This is a significant event. pic.twitter.com/c2pljDKb2A

— Global: Military-Info (@Global_Mil_Info) July 25, 2023

Earlier, soon after his arrival in Pyongyang, Shoigu held talks with General Kang Sun Nam, the head of the North Korean military.

“It is a pleasure to meet and get to know you. I accepted with gratitude your invitation to visit Pyongyang, the capital of a state friendly to us. I am grateful to Korean friends for the proposed rich program. From the first minutes I felt your care and your attention. It is possible not only to work actively, but also to learn a lot of interesting things about the DPRK, your culture, traditions and sights,” said Shoigu.

The Kremlin has repeatedly emphasised that Russia considers North Korea as an important partner with which it is connected by a common border and a rich history of cooperation.

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