Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's top leader Kim Jong-un speak during their meeting at the Vostochny Spaceport, Russia, on September 13, 2023. Photo: Xinhua

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met at Vostochny space launch facility in Russia's Far Eastern Amur Region on Wednesday, and experts said the two countries, which both suffer from heavy sanctions and threats from the US-led West, are likely to upgrade their cooperation over technologies related to rockets or ballistic missiles.

According to TASS, Putin made it clear on Wednesday at the Vostochny Spaceport that Moscow stands ready to help North Korea build satellites. Kim, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, arrived at Khasan, border town of Russia on Tuesday, and met Putin at the spaceport on Wednesday.

"This is why we are visiting here. The North Korean leader has expressed a strong interest in rocket technology, and they are also seeking to develop space exploration capabilities," Putin told reporters.

North Korea failed to launch a military reconnaissance satellite twice this year. The latest attempt was on August 24, and the first was on May 31, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Experts said this proves that the country really needs support from outside to improve its satellite launch program, and Russia is a country with mature and advanced technology, while North Korea can provid what Russia desires.

Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Wednesday that ballistic missile technology can be used for building rockets to launch satellites and nuclear weapons, so it is very sensitive, and any Russia-North Korea cooperation will surely unnerve the US and its allies.

Cui Heng, an assistant research fellow at the Center for Russian Studies of East China Normal University, told the Global Times on Wednesday that "rocket or ballistic missile technology is extremely sensitive for a nuclear-armed power. The meeting at Vostochny Spaceport proves that the mutual-trust between the two countries is very high."

When asked ahead of his meeting with Kim whether the two leaders would discuss defense cooperation, Putin said "We will discuss every issue without any rush; we have the time."

Due to the Ukraine crisis and the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, Russia and North Korea are now both facing heavy sanctions and threats from the US-led West, and Russia and the West have already started to decouple from each other. Russia therefore has nothing to worry about if it provides sensitive technology to North Korea, as it is no longer afraid of any further sanctions from the West. There might be nothing left that could be sanctioned by the West now, experts said. 

In other words, it is Washington and its allies that have pushed Moscow and Pyongyang to stand closer and closer, and the US and its allies will have to face any consequence caused by their hostile strategy that ruined the security situation in both Europe and Northeast Asia, analysts noted. 

Kim said during his dialogue with Putin that "Now, Russia is fighting a sacred fight to protect its state sovereignty and security while combating hegemonic forces that oppose Russia," Kim said, adding that his visit came at "a special time," according to TASS.

The North Korean leader expressed his full support to the Russian leadership. "We have always supported every decision that President Putin or the Russian government makes," Kim said. Pyongyang is seeking to develop further its relationship with Moscow, the North Korean leader noted, TASS reported on Wednesday.