PYONGYANG, North Korea, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong II visited the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang to attend a New Year's reception, Russian and North Korean media reported Monday.
Kim made the visit Sunday at the invitation of the new Russian ambassador, Andrei Karlov, the Itar-Tass news agency said. Chief of the Army General Staff Kim Yong Chun, Defense Minister Kim II Chol and other members of his administration accompanied the North Korean leader.
South Korea's Unification Ministry said it was Kim's first known visit to the Russian Embassy since he took power following the death of his father, Kim II Sung, in 1994.
Embassy officials served Kim bread and salt, a traditional Russian custom for distinguished guests, and held a dinner Kim, North Korea's Central News Agency reported. A picture of the North Korean leader and embassy staff was also taken.
Kim traveled to Moscow and met with Russian President Putin last August.
