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North Korean State Affairs Commission Chief Secretary Kim Chang-son (left)

North Korean State Affairs Commission Chief Secretary Kim Chang-son, the official in charge of protocol for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, reportedly departed for Vladivostok on Mar. 23 after a five-day visit to Moscow.

According to Yonhap News, Kim Chang-son arrived in Moscow via Beijing on Mar. 19 and boarded a plane to Vladivostok at 4:10 pm on Mar. 23. Arriving at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport in a black vehicle that afternoon, Kim’s entourage was photographed by reporters as its members entered the airport terminal building.

Kim’s departure for the Russian Far East – after initial predictions that he would head straight back to North Korea via Beijing – had some analysts speculating that Vladivostok may have been chosen as a venue for a North Korea-Russia summit. Observers read the inclusion of Vladivostok as one of Kim’s main travel stops as signaling a preliminary survey of the setting.

Within the South Korean government, Kim’s itinerary was seen as closely tied to a future Russia visit by Kim Jong-un. With the Donald Trump administration in the US ratcheting up pressure for sanctions in the wake of the Hanoi summit and the Moon Jae-in administration lacking any sure-fire means of turning the situation around, Kim Jong-un was seen as likely to opt for shoring up his position through a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

While no signals have yet been detected on the date of the North Korea-US summit, many are predicting it will happen around the time of the first meeting of North Korea’s 14th Supreme People’s Assembly around Apr. 11.

By Kim Ji-eun, staff reporter

Please direct questions to [english@hani.co.kr]