Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in North Korea on Tuesday for his first visit in 24 years, the Interfax news agency reported.

Vladimir Putin’s plane landed in Pyongyang at 3 a.m. local time, where he was awaited by Kim Jong Un.

The official welcoming ceremony is postponed to noon the following day when the official meeting of the two leaders will also take place, during which they are expected to sign agreements to deepen the cooperation between the two countries, which has been significantly strengthened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In fact, as analysts point out, the cooperation of the two authoritarian countries may help to maintain the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.

On the eve of his arrival, Vladimir Putin looked back on the long history of Russia and North Korea in an article published in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper.

Putin wrote that Moscow was “the first among the states of the world” to recognize and establish diplomatic ties with Pyongyang.

In fact, the Russian president in his article referred to the past that connects the two countries, pointing out the help that Moscow had offered.

“Our country has helped Korean friends build their national economy, create a health care system, develop science and education, and train professional administrative and technical personnel,” Putin writes.

The Soviet Union “also lent a helping hand” to North Korea during the Korean War, the Russian President adds in the article.

“I am convinced that our joint efforts will bring our bilateral interaction to a higher level, which will facilitate mutually beneficial and equal cooperation between Russia and the DPRK.”

The concern of the West

In recent months, expansionist Russia and reclusive North Korea have traded everything from food and oil to weapons, the Wall Street Journal writes. As the Kremlin’s war with Ukraine continues, Russian President Vladimir Putin has turned to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for help in replacing his depleted arsenal. In turn, Moscow plans to transfer military technology to Pyongyang, which has nuclear weapons.

The reinforcement of of North Korea’s nuclear capabilities, it could prompt a greater US military presence in the region, while also worrying China.

“The situation in the world, including the Asia-Pacific region, is very tense,” said Alexander Zhebin, chief researcher at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Center for Korean Studies at the Institute of China and Modern Asia. “Strengthening Russia’s ties and cooperation with countries that support it politically is obviously very important, now more than ever,” he stresses.

North Korea is believed to have a large stockpile of old weapons compatible with Soviet and Russian weapons systems used in Ukraine, as well as a production capacity that would help Russia serve its increased ammunition needs.

The advantage of Kim Jong Un

The present situation is bargaining advantage for Kim Jong Un as it is a reversal of the balance between the two countries, given North Korea’s past military dependence on the Soviet Union, including its Soviet-backed invasion of the South that sparked the 1950-53 Korean War.

Russia also needs workers, which North Korea can provide. Russia has long used North Korean workers as cheap labor.

According to another analysis, however, the tightening of relations between the two leaders in recent years is a product of short-term necessity rather than a formal, lasting alliance.

“There is too much mutual mistrust between the two countries. The current improvement in their relations is driven by circumstances,” said Andrei Lankov, a scholar of Russia-North Korea relations and professor of Korean Studies at Kookmin University in Seoul.