Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko began on Wednesday his first official visit to North Korea, with the two countries united by Western sanctions, closeness to Russia and accusations of rights violations.
Belarusian state news agency Belta said the two-day visit was to deepen ties and “identify key areas of mutual interest and the most promising projects for implementation”.
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Both nations have provided Moscow assistance with its war in Ukraine, with Pyongyang dispatching ground troops and weapons and Minsk serving as a launchpad for Russia’s invasion in 2022.
Kim Jong Un and Lukashenko met in September in Beijing when they attended a military parade at Tiananmen Square, where the North Korean leader reportedly extended an invitation.
The visit is intended to “show solidarity” among nations opposed to the Western order, Lee Ho-ryung of the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses told AFP.
“Kim will try to use the occasion to raise its diplomatic profile and strengthen solidarity among the so-called anti-Western bloc,” she said.
In a letter to Lukashenko earlier this month, Kim said he was “willing to expand and develop the traditional relations of friendship and cooperation... to a new, higher stage in line with the demands of the new era”, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
The Belarusian leader in return said that “Minsk affirms it has an interest in actively expanding political and economic ties with Pyongyang at all levels”.
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