In his New Year’s message, North Korea’s president praises his “dearest friend” Putin

North Korean President Kim Jong Un, in a New Year message, described his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, as a “dearest friend,” according to official media, praising the close bilateral relations that unite their two countries.

Political, military and cultural relations between Moscow and Pyongyang have deepened since the Russian war on Ukraine in February 2022, as Putin and Kim were keen to show the strength of their personal relationship.

The two leaders signed a joint defense agreement during Putin’s visit to the isolated north last June.

The agreement, which recently entered into force, obliges both parties to provide immediate military support to the other party in the event of an invasion.

North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim’s latest message described Putin as a “dearest friend and comrade.”

The agency added that the North Korean leader sent “best wishes to the brotherly Russian people, all service members of the brave Russian army, on behalf of himself and the Korean people, and all members of the armed forces of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” and Kim also expressed “his readiness to design and advance new projects.” Forward,” after their “useful journey in 2024.”

The United States and South Korea accuse nuclear-armed Pyongyang of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to support Russia in its war on Ukraine.

North Korean official media reported last Friday that Putin sent a similar message to Kim, in which he praised bilateral relations between the two countries.

On the other hand, North Korea revealed a plan to establish a coastal resort under the supervision of its leader Kim Jong Un, according to what the North Korean government news agency reported, in a “big first step” towards a possible reopening of the country.

North Korea reopened its borders in August 2023, after nearly four years of closure imposed during the “Covid-19” pandemic, which prevented even its citizens from entering.

The agency quoted Kim Jong Un as saying that the site, which is part of the Wonsan-Kalma development project in the east of the country, constitutes a “big first step” in developing tourism. Kim toured the resort with his daughter, Kim Joo Ae, according to the North Korean news agency.

Pictures published by the agency showed Kim and his daughter walking along the beach, wandering between abandoned hotels under development.

Kim expressed “great satisfaction” with the construction of the facilities that “can be used to host important foreign, political and cultural events for the state,” according to the agency.