Putin praised Kim Jong Un's support for the Ukraine war while visiting North Korea

SEOUL, South Korea – Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in North Korea on Tuesday in a rare visit to the reclusive communist state, seeking support from leader Kim Jong Un in his war against Ukraine.

Putin's two-day visit, his first to North Korea in 24 years, comes as North Korean troops cross the heavily guarded border between North and South Korea for the second time this month, drawing warning shots from South Korean troops.

In a letter published Tuesday in Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party, Putin expressed gratitude for North Korea's support of what he called Russia's “special military operation” in Ukraine.

He said he would support North Korea's efforts to protect its interests in the face of decades of “US economic pressure, provocation, blackmail and military threats.”

Putin also pointed to the two countries' growing alignment in their hostility to the West, which is concerned about arms and intelligence transfers that could fuel Putin's ambitions in Ukraine and Kim's dream of becoming an internationally recognized nuclear state.

Russian state media reported on Tuesday that the two countries will sign a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement during Putin's visit. Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, previously said the deal “will not be directed against any country but is aimed at ensuring greater stability in the Northeast Asian region.”

North Korea has long been under UN Security Council sanctions over its nuclear weapons and missile programs, while Russia has also been increasingly isolated by Western sanctions over its war in Ukraine. North Korea is seen as an important source of military aid to replenish Russia's depleted arsenal.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Monday that Putin has become “incredibly desperate over the last few months” amid the crisis in Ukraine and is seeking help from North Korea and Iran. North Korea has illegally transferred dozens of ballistic missiles and more than 11,000 containers of weapons to Russia in recent months, he said.

Both countries have denied the arms transfer, which would be a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

A spokesman for South Korea's foreign ministry said before the visit that cooperation between Russia and North Korea must not violate UN Security Council resolutions, and it conveyed that message to Russia.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Monday rejected what he called a “lonely bromance” between Kim and Putin. He told Agence France-Presse that the best way to respond was to “strengthen the diplomatic alliance for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine” and provide more Western air defense systems and weapons.

Although they are likely to continue to deny it, North Korea and Russia have “significantly disguised their illicit activities by enticing their cooperation,” said Leif-Erik Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewa Women's University in Seoul.

“Part of Putin's visit is to thank North Korea for acting as an 'arsenal of tyranny' in support of its illegal aggression in Ukraine,” he said in an email.

The visit allowed North Korean state media to portray Kim as a world leader, Easley added. It follows a trip by Kim to the Russian Far East last September, where he toured a Russian spaceport and Putin suggested Russia could help North Korea develop satellites.

Last week, Kim boasted of the two countries' relationship, calling North Korea an “invincible comrade-in-arms” with Russia in a message to Putin marking Russia's national day.

Ushakov said Monday that Putin's visit to North Korea would include one-on-one talks, a state reception, an honor guard and a statement to the media. Other members of the delegation include Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and the head of the Russian Space Agency.

Hours before Putin's arrival, South Korean officials said about 30 North Korean soldiers had illegally crossed the military demarcation line between the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea. The two countries are technically still at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North Korean soldiers, some of whom were armed with heavy weapons, turned toward North Korea after the South Korean military broadcast warning messages and fired warning shots.

The border crossing occurred at a different location than a similar brief incursion on June 9 that South Korean authorities believe was not intentional.

On both occasions, North Korean troops were carrying out tasks including laying mines along the border, erecting walls and building roads for military operations, South Korean officials said. Such work has been underway since November, when North Korea said it was suspending a 2018 military accord aimed at easing tensions between the two Koreas.

South Korea said this month it was suspending the deal entirely in response to a series of trash-filled balloons the North sent toward the South.

South Korean officials said Tuesday that they believe a North Korean land mine detonation along the border has caused multiple casualties among North Korean soldiers.

“The North Korean soldiers are continuing their work unreservedly despite these accidents and casualties,” they said.

Stella Kim reports from Seoul, South Korea, and Mithil Aggarwal from Hong Kong.