Russian House Representative: "North Korean Delegation May Visit Russia This Month"

The North Korean delegation may visit the Russian State Duma on the 13th of this month, and the Duma is scheduled to make a return visit next month, according to Kazbek Taysaev, a member of the Russian State Duma from the Communist Party of Russia.

On the 1st (local time), Taysaev told RIA Novosti, "They (the North Korean delegation) are scheduled to visit the Duma on the 13th, and we will go to them in March."

He also serves as the First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma's Committee on the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS, the former Soviet countries).

In September last year, Taysaev said that the Duma delegation was planning to visit North Korea in the fall of that year.

Earlier, Dmitry Novikov, Deputy Chairman of the Duma's Committee on International Affairs, also stated that North Korea, China, and Cuba are priorities for the Duma delegation's visits this year.

Last month, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui made an official visit to Russia and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

President Putin accepted Kim Jong-un's invitation to visit North Korea after holding a summit with the North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East in September last year.

However, the Kremlin stated that although President Putin's visit to North Korea is being coordinated, there are no plans for the visit before the presidential election in March.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) shakes hands with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, who visited the Moscow Kremlin on the 16th of last month (local time). [Image source=Yonhap News]