Reports coming in from Russia say Kim’s train has been spotted at the railway station in the town of Ussuriysk, which is about 98km (61 miles) north of Vladivostok.
The sighting is raising expectations that Kim and Putin might be planning to meet somewhere else in eastern Russia.
Kremlin confirms Kim Jong Un is in Russia
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirms Kim is now in Russia, according to the Interfax news agency.
What do we know about Kim Jong Un’s train?
It’s four years since Kim travelled overseas, but his preferred mode of transport – like his famously flight averse father – is a private train.
The train is supposedly armoured and photos shared by state media show its rather old-fashioned carriages painted green with yellow trim.
Although he has also been known to fly, Kim used the train for his last visit to Russia in 2019, as well as for his failed summit with then US President Donald Trump earlier that year, and on a visit to Beijing in 2018.
It’s known to be comfortable, which is just as well as it moves slowly. According to reports the train can manage speeds of only about 50 kilometres per hour (31 miles per hour).
In Kim Jong-il’s day the train was said to be luxurious – according to a 2002 account from Russian official Konstantin Pulikovsky who accompanied the elder Kim on a three-week trip to Moscow, the train carried cases of expensive French wine and passengers could feast on fresh lobster and pork barbeque.
South Korea ‘closely monitoring’ Russia-North Korea meeting
South Korea says it is watching events in Russia, reiterating that any arms deals would breach sanctions imposed on North Korea over its nuclear weapons programme.
“Our government is closely monitoring trends related to the situation on the Korean Peninsula, including human exchanges between Russia and North Korea,” said Lim Soo-suk, spokesman for South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “No UN member country should violate Security Council resolutions on North Korean sanctions, which include illegal arms trades. In particular, military cooperation with North Korea, which harms international peace and stability, should absolutely not occur,”
