(3rd LD) Russian regional delegation visits N. Korea

▲ Oleg Kozhemyako (center L), governor of the Russian far eastern region of Primorsky Krai that borders North Korea, shakes hands with North Korean officials during his visit to Pyongyang in this photo taken from the website of the Korean Central News Agency on Dec. 12, 2023. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (L) shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of their talks at the Vostochny Cosmodrome space launch center in the Russian Far East on Sept. 13, 2023, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

(3rd LD) N Korea-Russia

(3rd LD) Russian regional delegation visits N. Korea

(ATTN: ADDS foreign ministry official's comments in last 2 paras)

SEOUL, Dec. 12 (Yonhap) -- A Russian delegation has arrived in North Korea, state media said Tuesday, in the latest sign of growing ties between the two countries.

The delegation led by Oleg Kozhemyako, governor of the Russian far eastern region of Primorsky Krai that borders North Korea, arrived in Pyongyang on Monday and was welcomed by Ji Kyong-su, vice minister of external economic relations, at Pyongyang International Airport, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The KCNA did not provide details on the purpose of the visit.

Speaking to a Russian media outlet last month, Kozhemyako said he plans to visit North Korea this year to discuss cooperation in the fields of tourism, trade and agriculture.

But there are views their talks may discuss the possible deployment of North Korean workers to Russia, which is banned under United Nations sanctions resolutions against North Korea.

An official at South Korea's unification ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, hinted at the possibility of dispatching North Koreans to Russia, noting the two sides have demand for it and signs of such deployment have been detected overseas.

The visit comes as North Korea and Russia have been seeking to strengthen cooperation in various areas following the rare summit between their leaders Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin in September.

In November, North Korea and Russia signed a bilateral protocol on expanding cooperation on the economy, science and technology, just four weeks after the visit to Pyongyang by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"Considering the series of events, it is assumed that some kind of cooperation between Russian and North Korea is taking place," the ministry official said.

A foreign ministry official in Seoul said the suspected dispatch of North Korean workers to Russia is a violation of two specific U.N. Security Council sanctions resolutions that banned giving North Koreans a work permit and required all North Korean workers in Russia to be sent back home by the end of 2019.

"We are closely monitoring the North Korea-Russia activities believed to be taking place in various areas," the official said.

elly@yna.co. kr

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