North Korea's Kim appears to have departed for Russia for summit with Putin -YTN (updated)

YTN

11/09/2023 08:38

(Adds background, Interfax report from paragraph 2)
       SEOUL, Sept 11 (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong
Un appears to have departed for Russia for a summit with
President Vladimir Putin, South Korean broadcaster YTN reported
on Monday, citing an unnamed senior government source.
    Kim appears to be headed to North Korea's northeastern
border on a special train, with the summit likely to be held as
early as on Tuesday, according to the report. The broadcaster
earlier said the meeting could take place on Wednesday. 
    Earlier in the day, Russian news agency Interfax reported
Kim was expected to visit the Far East "in the coming days".
     The trip would be Kim's first visit abroad in more than
four years and the first since the COVID-19 pandemic. 
    His last trip abroad in 2019 was also to Vladivostok for his
first summit with Putin after the collapse of North Korea's
nuclear disarmament talks with former U.S. President Donald
Trump.

 (Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi, Jack Kim; Editing by Toby Chopra
and Himani Sarkar)
 ((soohyang.choi@thomsonreuters.com;))