Pyongyang: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held summit talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Pyongyang and signed a treaty on friendship and cooperation, the North's state media reported Friday. Lukashenko, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, made a two-day official visit to North Korea on Wednesday and Thursday at the invitation of Kim.
According to Yonhap News Agency, during the summit held Thursday, Lukashenko stated that Pyongyang-Minsk ties have entered "a new development state," while Kim expressed solidarity with the Belarusian leader's policy for "defending sovereign rights" in the international arena. Both Belarus and North Korea have supported Russia's war against Ukraine, and the countries have strengthened relations and cooperation on that basis.