Putin Welcomes Choe Son-hui, North Korean Foreign Minister
On November 4th, Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, unexpectedly met with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui during her visit to Russia, according to reports. This is seen as a special gesture towards North Korea in light of military dispatch discussions.
The Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, stated that President Putin welcomed Minister Choe at the Kremlin, with Russian media such as Sputnik reporting on the meeting. A video was released showing President Putin shaking hands with Minister Choe for about a minute while engaging in conversation.
Putin expressed that meeting a good friend on Russia’s National Unity Day is a fine tradition, warmly welcoming Minister Choe. In response, Minister Choe thanked President Putin for the meeting and conveyed “deeply sincere and warm greetings” from Kim Jong-un, the Supreme Leader of North Korea.
Choe Son-hui has been in Russia since October 29th. Initially, the Kremlin announced that there was no planned meeting with President Putin, but the unplanned meeting suggests that special treatment was given to North Korea, likely considering discussions on military dispatch.