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The two leaders talked in a restricted format before proceeding to negotiate with delegations. Their one-on-one meeting, which lasted an hour and a half, focused on the present and future of the Russian-North Korean political dialogue as well as international issues of mutual concern.

Mr Putin and Mr Kim discussed specifically the relations between the two Koreas and the possibility of their reunification. The Russian President supported the efforts of the North Korean leader to continue contacts with South Korea.

Partnership to maintain strategic stability and collaborative economic projects were also high on the agenda. As was pointed out at the meeting, economic cooperation involved not just the upgrading of railway links and the renovation of industrial and energy projects in North Korea, but also joint extraction of minerals, notably magnesium.

Opening the talks in the enlarged format, Mr Putin said he was highly satisfied with the development of bilateral relations. He singled out the creation of an adequate regulatory framework as one of the most important achievements in advancing bilateral contacts. Since 1996, the two countries have signed about 20 intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements, with the key one of these being the Friendship and Cooperation Treaty.

The talks culminated in the signing by the two leaders of the Moscow Declaration, which emphasized the sides’ commitment to building a new, fairer world order, one based on the rule of law and on the principles of equality, mutual respect and beneficial cooperation for the sake of maintaining global stability and ensuring the security of each and every member of the world community in the political, economic, social, cultural, information and other areas.

While recognizing that in international relations, independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of states should be consistently ensured, Russia and North Korea reaffirmed the right of each state to an equal degree of security.

Given that the 1972 ABM Treaty is the cornerstone of strategic stability and the foundation for further reductions of existing strategic offensive weapons, the two leaders expressed their determination to continue efforts toward consolidating international security in the 21st century.

The North Korean side assured that its missile programme was of a peaceful nature and consequently was not aimed against any country which treated Pyongyang’s sovereignty with respect. The Russian side welcomed North Korea’s stance.

Upon completion of the talks, Mr Putin hosted a dinner in his North Korean guest’s honour.