Putin to visit North Korea and Vietnam this week

The Kremlin has officially announced that Russian ruler Vladimir Putin will visit North Korea on 18-19 June and Vietnam on 19-20 June, having apparently been invited by the leaders of these countries.

Source: official page of the Kremlin on Telegram; Russian propagandistic sources; Reuters

Details: Reportedly, Putin will come to North Korea on a "friendly visit" on an invitation from Kim Jong Un.

"During Putin’s visit to Vietnam it is planned to discuss the development of partnership between Moscow and Hanoi, the issue of international and regional agenda," the press service of the Kremlin reported.

Based on the results of Putin’s negotiations in Vietnam, the sides plan to make a joint statement and sign a range of bilateral documents.

Reuters notes that the visit to Vietnam follows Hanoi’s refusal to join the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland last weekend, while sending its deputy foreign minister to a BRICS meeting in Russia earlier last week.

The US, which improved its relations with Hanoi last year and is now Vietnam’s main trade partner, reacted to Putin’s trip harshly.

"No country should give Putin a platform to promote his war of aggression and otherwise allow him to normalise his atrocities," a spokesperson for the US Embassy in Hanoi said in an interview for Reuters when asked about the impact of the visit on ties with the United States.

"If he is able to travel freely, it could normalise Russia's blatant violations of international law," the spokesperson added, referring to the invasion of Ukraine that Putin launched in February 2022.

Background: 

• Putin visited North Korea only once during all his time in office – in 2000 when Kim Jong-Il was the leader of this country. Latest visit of the current North Korean leader to Russia was in September 2023.
• In 2023 the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Putin due to the war in Ukraine. North Korea and Vietnam do not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC.
• Putin visited China in May.

Support UP or become our patron!