Belarusian President Lukashenko Visits North Korea for Talks with Kim Jong Un

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko arrived in Pyongyang on Wednesday for an official visit to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Lukashenko was welcomed at the airport by North Korean Vice Premier Kim Tok Hun and later received by Kim Jong Un during a ceremony at Kim Il Sung Square, as reported by the Belarusian president's press service.

During the visit, the two leaders laid flowers at a memorial honoring Soviet soldiers who died during the Korean War. Lukashenko also toured a mausoleum displaying the embalmed bodies of Kim's grandfather and father, the country's first two leaders, according to North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency.

Lukashenko, who has led Belarus for over three decades, is a close ally of the Kremlin. He permitted Russia to use Belarusian territory for its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and later authorized the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

Kim Jong Un has also prioritized relations with Russia in recent years, sending thousands of troops and large quantities of weapons to support Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, while pursuing a more assertive foreign policy aimed at expanding ties with countries that oppose Washington.

According to Belarus' state news agency Belta, bilateral ties between North Korea and Belarus are on the agenda of the two leaders' talks. Lukashenko last met Kim in September 2025 in Beijing and was invited to visit North Korea, the agency reported. In 2024, Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov visited North Korea.

Ryzhenkov stated that the countries will sign a friendship and cooperation treaty during Lukashenko's visit.