North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has assured Moscow of his country’s full and unconditional support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, during talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the eastern coastal city of Wonsan, state media reported on Sunday.

Lavrov’s visit marks the latest in a string of high-level exchanges as the two isolated allies tighten military and political cooperation amid Russia’s ongoing offensive against Kyiv.

According to Pyongyang’s KCNA, Kim told Lavrov he was “ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership” to address what he called the “root cause” of the Ukrainian crisis.

The North Korean leader also expressed confidence in a Russian victory, praising President Vladimir Putin’s “outstanding leadership” and hailing the campaign as a “sacred cause” to defend Russia’s dignity and interests.

Lavrov, for his part, expressed “sincere gratitude” to North Korea for its support, including its deployment of troops and supply of artillery shells and missiles to Russian forces. Russia’s foreign ministry noted the sides agreed to blame the West for escalating tensions not only in Ukraine, but also on the Korean peninsula.

A video released by the Russian ministry showed Kim and Lavrov greeting each other with a handshake and a hug at the Wonsan resort, a pet project of Kim’s that opened earlier this month. Lavrov later described the seaside city as “a good tourist attraction,” saying he hoped it would draw visitors from Russia.

The two also reviewed progress on agreements reached during Putin’s June 2024 summit visit to Pyongyang, with Lavrov relaying that the Russian president “hopes for continued direct contacts in the very near future,” according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Lavrov departed Pyongyang for Beijing on Sunday to attend a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation ministerial meeting. Ahead of his visit, Russia announced it would begin operating twice-weekly flights between Moscow and Pyongyang.

During a separate meeting in Wonsan on Saturday, Lavrov and his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui described bilateral relations as an “invincible alliance.” KCNA reported that Moscow reaffirmed its support for Pyongyang’s efforts to defend state security, while Choe expressed “full sympathy and support” for Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

TASS quoted Lavrov thanking the “heroic” North Korean troops sent to fight for Russia. According to South Korean estimates, roughly 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded in Ukraine since Pyongyang began deploying forces — a deployment North Korea only acknowledged in April.

Both governments also restated their resolve to counter what they called the “hegemonic aspirations of extra-regional players,” which they accused of stoking instability in Northeast Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific.

The two heavily sanctioned states signed a military pact last year during Putin’s rare trip to Pyongyang, which included a mutual defense clause.