South Korea accuses Pyongyang of saber-rattling ahead of its leader Kim Jong Un’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff detected at least one missile launch from North Korea towards the Sea of Japan on Wednesday morning, according to Yonhap news agency.
North Korea allegedly conducted yet another missile test according to officials in Seoul, who gave no further details pending analysis of the projectile’s flight path. Japan’s Defense Ministry said the missile has already “likely landed” but the Coast Guard still urged vessels ain the area to watch out for possible falling objects, according to AP.
Kim Jong-un is currently visiting Russia, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula, which has seen recurring missile launches by Pyongyang as well as military drills involving South Korean and US troops.
Commenting on the agenda of the Russian-North Korean summit, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov did not specify where exactly in the Far East the talks would take place.
The armored train carrying North Korean leader crossed into Russian territory on Tuesday morning. In the meantime, Vladimir Putin was at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, but on Wednesday has paid a visit to Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome in the far-eastern Amur Region.
The upcoming talks are set to focus on a number of “sensitive issues” as well as bilateral economic and cultural cooperation, and the overall situation in the region, the Kremlin spokesman said. He said that the negotiations would be held both with Russian and North Korean delegations present and in a one-on-one format.