North Korean envoy Choe Ryong Hae, pictured on Oct. 4, 2014, returned from an official visit to Russia on Nov. 24, 2014. Yonhap
PYONGYANG, North Korea, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Two days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's envoy Choe Ryong Hae returned from a week-long trip to Russia, the North's party-run daily Rodong Sinmun published an account of his travel.
Under the headline "Report on Visit to Russia Made by Comrade Kim Jong Eun's Special Envoy," the paper declared the trip "an important opportunity that further strengthened the traditionally close collaborative ties between the two countries, and it will be important in securing peace and stability both in Northeast Asia and the world."
The Supreme Leader dispatched Choe, considered one of his closest aides, to Russia as Pyongyang seeks to strengthen its bilateral relations with Russia amid cooling ties with China.
"The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing exchange and cooperation in 2015 in the political, economic, and military fields, and others," the paper reported.
Politically, Russia could prove a useful veto power at the U.N. Security Council should a vote be called on a resolution referring Kim Jong Un to the International Criminal Court for human rights violations. Although U.S. Ambassador Robert King, Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues, predicts China would use its veto power to stop the resolution, North Korea could be seeking Russia's support in the event international pressure sways Beijing.
North Korea is attempting to expand its trade diversification in response to international pressure on China to use its economic influence to deter the North's nuclear ambitions. Last month, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry applauded China for "being helpful" with regard to imposing "limitations on trade going into the country."
Militarily, there is evidence North Korea has been seeking to strengthen ties with Russia. North Korean Defense Minister Hyon Yong Chol met earlier in the month with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a birthday celebration for former Soviet Union Defense Minister Dmitry Yazo.
