BEIJING – Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have met to begin bilateral talks in Beijing.

The two leaders met formally at the Diaoyutai state guest house after attending a major military parade in the heart of the Chinese capital that marked the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Putin and Kim traveled from a formal reception to the negotiations in the same car, the Kremlin said in a post on social media.

Speaking in front of journalists as the meeting began, Putin praised the bravery and heroism North Korean soldiers who fought alongside Moscow’s troops to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region.

According to South Korean assessments, North Korea has sent around 15,000 troops to Russia since last year. It has also sent large quantities of military equipment, including ballistic missiles and artillery, to help fuel Putin’s three-year invasion of Ukraine.

In his opening remarks, Kim said that cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow has “significantly strengthened” since the two countries signed a strategic partnership pact in June last year during a summit in the North Korean capital.

Although he did not specifically mention the war, Kim stressed that “if there’s anything I can do for you and the people of Russia, if there is more that needs to be done, I will consider it as a fraternal duty, an obligation that we surely need to bear, and will be prepared to do everything possible to help.”