Russian President Vladimir Putin is willing to visit Pyongyang at an early date, North Korea's state-run media said Sunday.
Putin expressed "deep thanks" for an invitation by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to visit the capital during a meeting with the country's visiting foreign minister, Choe Son Hui, the official Korean Central News Agency said.
The North Korean government "warmly welcomes President Putin to visit Pyongyang and is ready to greet the Korean people's closest friend with the greatest sincerity," KCNA said.
Putin's visit to North Korea, which could come before Russia's presidential election in March, would be his first since July 2000 when the country was led by Kim's late father, Kim Jong Il.
The two countries have been enhancing ties following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine that started in February 2022. The two leaders met last September at the Vostochny Cosmodrome space launch center in the Russian Far East during a visit to Russia by Kim.
The KCNA report quoted a statement released Saturday by the North Korean foreign minister's assistance office regarding Choe's three-day visit to Russia through Wednesday.
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