North Korea stresses alignment with Russia against US and says Putin could visit at an early date

FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un attend a meeting at the Vostochny Сosmodrome in the far eastern Amur region, Russia, September 13, 2023. - Reuters

SEOUL, South Korea (AP): North Korea said Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his willingness to visit the North at an unspecified "early date” as the countries continue to align in the face of their separate, intensifying confrontations with the United States.

The North Korean Foreign Ministry highlighted Putin’s intent for a visit following North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui’s meetings with Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow last week.