MOSCOW, November 1. /TASS/. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a statement on the Telegram channel that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui opened a commemorative plaque at Yaroslavsky railway station in memory of Kim Il Sung’s visit to the USSR in 1949.

The spokesman shared photos of the meeting held in Moscow between foreign ministers. “Sergey Lavrov welcomed his counterpart with a bouquet. The meeting started at the Yaroslavsky railway station, where a commemorative plaque commemorating Kim Il Sung’s visit to the USSR in 1949 was unveiled. After that, the talks will continue at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” the diplomat said. noted.

Kim Il Sung’s first visits to the USSR as president of the country took place from March 3 to 25, 1949 and again in April 1950 (the exact date of the second visit was not officially stated). During these meetings with Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the potential for hostility between North Korea and US-controlled South Korea, declared in 1948, was discussed. The Korean War began in June 1950 and lasted until 1953. Additionally, Stalin and Kim Il Sung considered the USSR’s provision of comprehensive economic and military support to North Korea.

A notable gift from the Soviet leader to Kim Il Sung was an armored vehicle currently on display in one of North Korean museums. Kim Il Sung’s tradition of traveling abroad by armored train continues today.