{"id":190087,"date":"2026-06-01T15:36:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T12:36:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/190087\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T15:42:02","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T12:42:02","slug":"lukasenka-asks-governor-of-russian-province-to-smooth-trade-with-north-korea","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/190087\/","title":{"rendered":"\u0141uka\u0161enka asks governor of Russian province to smooth trade with North Korea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

June 1, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>Belarusian authorities count on Primorsky Krai acting as an intermediary to facilitate trade with North Korea, Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka said Monday in Minsk while meeting with the governor of Russia\u2019s Far Eastern province, Oleg Kozhemyako.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I have been to North Korea very recently,” \u0141uka\u0161enka was quoted as saying by his press office. “You know, the leader [Kim Jong Un] made a very deep impression on me. He’s bright! A young, promising man, oriented toward cooperation. He is no dictator or anything like that. In essence, he cannot be a dictator. So, we have developed a good relationship. And we are very much counting on you, Oleg Nikolaevich [Kozhemyako], to provide us with intermediary services in trade with North Korea, as we once discussed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kozhemyako, for his part, noted that a road bridge over the Tumen River was about to be commissioned to link Russia and North Korea. He referred to \u201cissues relating to the supply of goods and mutual settlements\u201d and \u0141uka\u0161enka replied, without elaborating, that \u201cwe will be able to offer you our shoulder somewhere, but for the most part you will be the ones helping up.\u201d He described \u201cthis\u201d as a beneficial project for Primorsky Krai, and Kozhemyako agreed with the remark, adding that relations between Russia and Belarus \u201callow this to be done absolutely openly and without any additional complications.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new road bridge over the Tumen River connects North Korea and Russia, establishing a vital land trade route designed to handle up to 300 vehicles daily. It is highly controversial because experts and satellite data indicate that it will likely be used to streamline the transfer of military goods, weapons, and munitions to support Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u0141uka\u0161enka visited North Korea in late March, and his spokeswoman said that visit \u201cexceeded all expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

North Korea\u2019s Minister of External Economic Relations Yun Jong Ho is currently in Minsk for an agricultural exhibition scheduled for June 2-6 as Minsk seeks to sell North Korea potash fertilizers and agricultural equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

North Korea is a totalitarian state under a strict cult of personality and also under UN Security Council sanctions over its nuclear program. Since its foundation in 1948, the power has been handed over from father to son \u2013 from Kim Il Sung to Kim Jong Il to Kim Jong Un.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month Minsk announced that it will open an embassy in Pyongyang by August 1. Ji Gyong Su, the newly appointed ambassador of North Korea to Belarus, has already presented his diplomatic credentials to \u0141uka\u0161enka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minsk has sought top-level contacts with North Korea for the last few years. Earlier this year, \u0141uka\u0161enka congratulated Kim Jong Un on his re-election as leader of the Workers\u2019 Party of Korea, while Kim congratulated the Belarusian politician on extending his 30-year-long rule in Belarus last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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