After being ousted from the world leaders community, President Vladimir Putin had a rare state meeting. The Leader of North Korea took the twenty-hour train ride to meet Putin at the Vostochny Cosmodrome a remote spaceport.

The media was not let into the proceedings, but the North Korean leader did leave with a rifle, a cosmonaut’s glove, and military drones.

Although it is very entreating to see two authoritarians at a spaceport like two super villains meeting up like some kind of Bond film, it seems obvious that Putin is looking for extra firepower to prolong his war in Ukraine, and Kim’s substantial conventional weapons stockpile could be the answer.

Image: Image: Shutterstock Andy.LIU

Produced By: Dominic Giles

Featured In Story: Dr Leonid Petrov, Visiting Fellow, School of Culture, History and Language, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific

First aired on The Wire, Tuesday 19 September 2023