Russian deputy foreign minister visits N. Korea: NK's state media

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko, left, is greeted by North Korean officials as he arrives in Pyongyang, March 15 in this photo released by North Korea's Central News Agency. Yonhap

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko is visiting North Korea, the North's state media KCNA said Saturday.

His trip takes place following a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire in the Ukraine war where thousands of North Korean troops have been deployed to support Russian forces, according to Ukrainian, U.S. and South Korean officials.

Rudenko has been involved in developing Russian ties with North Korea since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He was also a member of the Russian delegation at peace negotiations with Ukraine early in the war.

KCNA reported that the deputy minister had visited a landmark monument in the capital Pyongyang but did not provide further details.

More than 12,000 North Korean troops were in Russia, fighting against Ukrainian forces in the border region of Kursk, Dorothy Shea, then-deputy U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, told the U.N. Security Council in January.

U.S. President Donald Trump urged Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin on Friday to spare Ukrainian troops that Russia is pushing out of the Kursk region, an appeal Putin said he would honour if they surrendered. (Reuters)