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North Korea’s Kim thanks Putin for organizing his trip to Vostochny Spaceport — media

The North Korean leader expressed his admiration with "the noble spirit and traditions of a strong Russia that paved the way to space exploration"

TOKYO, September 14. /TASS/. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for arranging his trip to the Vostochny Spaceport in Russia’s Far East, said the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"Comrade Kim Jong Un expressed his deep gratitude to Comrade Putin for making personal efforts to arrange a sincere visit to a major spaceport and accompanying him there," the North Korean news agency reported.

According to KCNA, while visiting the assembly and test facility of the launch vehicle jointly with Putin, Kim listened to explanations about the technical features, assembly and launch of Soyuz-2, Angara and other launch vehicles.

The North Korean leader also acquainted himself with the ongoing construction of launch pads for Soyuz-2 and Angara launch vehicles and listened to a story about their operation, as well as Russia’s achievements and experience in the space industry and prospects for further development.

Kim expressed his admiration with "the noble spirit and traditions of a strong Russia that paved the way to space exploration."

According to KCNA, the Vostochny Spaceport has made a major contribution to space exploration "by means of successfully ensuring launches of spacecraft and satellites of various uses as it plays an important role in encouraging the social and economic development in the Amur Region and the Far East."

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is seeking to develop its own space program. On August 24, Pyongyang failed it second attempt to launch a reconnaissance satellite. During the first lunch on May 31, the Chollima-1 carrier rocket with the Malligyeong-1 reconnaissance satellite crashed into the Yellow Sea after an abnormal starting of the second-stage engine.