Kim Jong Un visits Russian aircraft factory under Western sanctions

(Patria) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Friday visited a Russian fighter jet factory that is under Western sanctions, Reuters reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim discussed military issues, the war in Ukraine and deepening cooperation when they met on Wednesday.

South Korea and the United States have stated that military cooperation between North Korea and Russia violates UN sanctions against Pyongyang and that the allies will ensure a price is paid for it.

Kim (39) on Friday toured aviation facilities in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the country's far east, the Yuri Gagarin aircraft plant and the Yakovlev factory, both units of the United Aircraft Corporation, which is under Western sanctions.

At the Gagarin plant, which is also under US sanctions, Kim inspected assembly workshops where the Sukhoi Su-35 multirole fighter and the Su-57 fighter are built, accompanied by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits the Gagarin aircraft factory in the #Khabarovsk region of the Russian Far East, where the Su-35 and Su-57 fighters are manufactured.#North_Korea #Russia#Russia #NorthKorea #KimJong #Putin #Breaking #KimTour #Aircraft #Komsomolsk #Video pic.twitter.com/TS577n5tvt

— mishikasingh (@mishika_singh) September 15, 2023

Kim, dressed in a suit and accompanied by North Korean military officials in uniform, was shown on Russian state television examining the cockpit of a fighter jet.

He then inspected workshops where fuselage sections and wing assemblies of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 are made before watching a demonstration flight of the Su-35.

The United States and South Korea fear that the revival of friendship between Moscow and Pyongyang could give Kim access to some of Russia's missiles and other technology.

Kim arrived in Russia on his special train on Tuesday, held a summit with Putin on Wednesday at Vostochny and appears to have spent most of Thursday traveling before appearing on Friday in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, 6,000 km east of Moscow.