North Korean Official Seen in Vladivostok Examined Security at Railway Station - Employee
North Korean official Kim Chang Son, who was seen in Vladivostok on Wednesday, was examining security measures at a local railway station, the station employee told Sputnik on Thursday
VLADIVOSTOK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th April, 2019) North Korean official Kim Chang Son, who was seen in Vladivostok on Wednesday, was examining security measures at a local railway station, the station employee told Sputnik on Thursday.
Kim Chang Son, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's de facto chief of staff, was seen by reporters of the Fuji News Network (FNN) broadcaster inspecting the surroundings of the Vladivostok train station amid speculations about Kim's alleged visit to Russia next week. The media outlet also published a close-up photo of the North Korean official next to the station.
"Yes, yesterday he was [here]. Many employees saw him. He was inspecting the security of the station ... The strengthening of the security regime has not yet been announced, but everyone was told that it is necessary to be on the alert in connection with the arrival of the Koreans soon," he said.
The administration of the station did not confirm or deny this information.
"We cannot confirm or deny this. We have no right to talk about it," the deputy head of the station said.
Kim Chang Son often travels to the locations which the North Korean leader is set to visit in order to iron out logistics.
In the run-up to the first and second US-North Korean summits, the official scouted hotels, venues and factory sites in Singapore and Hanoi.
Kim met with US President Donald Trump in Singapore in June last year, while their second summit took place in Hanoi in February.
This comes as the Yonhap news agency reported on Monday, citing a source, that a first-ever meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim could take place during the Russian president's likely trip to the Far East around April 24.
On Wednesday, media reported that on April 23, a passenger plane would arrive from Pyongyang in Vladivostok beyond the usual timetable. Kim's security service members might be coming by this aircraft to prepare the meeting of the leaders of North Korea and Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that he could not confirm media reports on the prospective meeting between Kim and Putin, although he said that the summit was being prepared.