Vietnam supports peace, denuclearization of Korean Peninsula

Le Thi Thu Hang was responding queries about the ongoing visit of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to Russia.

"Vietnam supports efforts to hold dialogues between multiple parties for the good of the people, peace, security, stability, cooperation and development on the Korean Peninsula, the region and the world," she said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin Thursday received Kim Jong-un in Vladivostok City. Putin said he hoped both countries would figure out ways to resolve issues on the Korean Peninsula, as also what Russia can do to support the ongoing, positive progress made. The Russian President also commended Kim’s efforts to normalize the relationship between North Korea and the United States.

Kim said that his summit with Putin, the first face-to-face meeting between the two, would help both countries evaluate issues on the Korean Peninsula and coordinate their stances.

Moscow was a crucial backer of Pyongyang for decades and their ties go back to the founding of North Korea, when the Soviet Union installed Kim Il Sung as leader. Russia has provided some $25 million in food aid to North Korea in recent years, according to the Kremlin.

Thursday’s meeting was the first between two leaders from the countries since 2011. It came two months after the second summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump, hosted by Hanoi, ended without a deal due to disagreements on the lifting of sanctions over North Korea and its process of denuclearization.