Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un hold first-ever talks

Vladivostok, April 25: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold their first-ever meeting in Vladivostok; Putin expresses his support to positive efforts to ease tension in the Korean peninsula. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un wants to denuclearize but needs "security guarantees" to do so.

 

Speaking after a high-profile summit with Kim, Putin said Russia favoured denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and Kim agreed, but said bilateral security guarantees were not enough.

Putin said he didn't know if it was time to resume six-way talks with North Korea to end a standoff over its nuclear weapons program.

The "six-party talks" had taken place between North and South Korea, the U.S., Japan, Russia and China in the early 2000s, but collapsed in 2009 when North Korea pulled out, saying it would resume its nuclear enrichment program in order to boost its nuclear deterrent.

Thursday's meeting was Kim's first one-on-one talks with another head of state since returning from his Hanoi summit with US President Donald Trump, which broke down without a deal on North Korea's nuclear arsenal in February.