Kim Jong Un’s Right Hand in Moscow: Strategic Talks with Lavrov Signal Growing Russia-North Korea Alliance

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui is set for strategic talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, according to reports from Yonhap News, citing Reuters and TASS.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova confirmed that Choe’s visit stems from an agreement made during the June North Korea-Russia summit. Choe, who left Pyongyang on Monday, made a stop in Vladivostok before arriving in Moscow. 

Choe will coordinate diplomatic responses regarding the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia and discuss Kim Jong Un’s visit to Russia, the upcoming U.S. presidential election, and potential additional troop deployments.

This is Choe’s second official visit to Russia this year; she previously met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Lavrov, and Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak during her January trip. More recently, she paused in Moscow last month while en route to St. Petersburg for the Eurasian Women’s Forum and the BRICS Women’s Forum to meet with Lavrov.

Whether Choe will meet with other Russian officials during her current visit remains unclear. In a briefing, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov noted that President Putin has no plans to meet with her, deferring further details about her visit to the Foreign Ministry.