Kim Jong Un and Putin meet, what are North Korea and Russia planning?

The leaders of North Korea and Russia are scheduled to meet this week, with deepening military, economic and geopolitical cooperation on the official agenda.

Behind closed doors, however, White House officials and political analysts believe the talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin will focus on arms deals and military cooperation that could potentially take their relationship to another, more disconcerting, level.

Ahead of Kim’s arrival in Vladivostok, Russia, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, the Pentagon said it had no detail on where exactly, or when, Putin and Kim’s meeting would take place.

“As far as the details of that meeting and what will be discussed and when and where, I just don’t have any information to provide,” Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Monday.

“I would just again reiterate that we remain concerned that North Korea is contemplating providing any type of ammunition or materiel support to Russia, in support of their war against Ukraine.”

There are concerns that Pyongyang could provide weaponry to Russia for use in its war in Ukraine, including millions of artillery shells, rockets, anti-tank missiles and small arms ammunition. There are also fears about what Moscow might offer the economically isolated and heavily sanctioned North Korea in return.

The White House said on Monday that any arms deal or military support for Russia’s war in Ukraine would directly violate a number of UN Security Council resolutions and added that it’s ready to impose more sanctions against North Korea without hesitation.