Vladimir Putin woos Kim Jong-un in bid for support from North Korea

Vladimir Putin sent a personal message to Kim Jong-un in a bid to secure support from North Korea, as Russia buckles under sanctions.

Vladimir Putin appealed to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for closer ties between Moscow and Pyongyang in what the US believes is a bid to secure support for its war in Ukraine.

It comes as Russia’s economy tanked under the strain of western sanctions, with the country’s central bank hiking rates after the ruble crashed to a 16-month low against the US dollar.

In a congratulatory message to mark North Korea’s National Liberation Day, Putin said the two countries have drawn closer since the Kremlin invaded Ukraine.

“I am sure that we will continue to build up bilateral co-operation in all areas for the benefit of our peoples, in the interests of strengthening stability and security on the Korean Peninsula and in the Northeast Asian region as a whole,” Putin said in a statement distributed by the Kremlin.

Vladimir Putin appealed to Kim Jong-un for closer ties between Russia and North Korea as the two countries suffer under economic sanctions. Picture: AFP

Putin said that it was during Korea’s liberation from Japan and “harsh wartime” that groundwork was laid for close co-operation between Moscow and Pyongyang.

The Russian leader’s statement came after his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu last month hailed his country’s partnership with North Korea during a meeting with his counterpart Kang Sun Nam in Pyongyang.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken responded to the visit saying that the United States believed Shoigu was in North Korea to secure supplies of weapons to aid Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.

The US believes Russia is attempting to secure weapons and supplies from North Korea to support its war in Ukraine. Picture: AFP

RUSSIAN RUBLE CRASHES

Russia’s central bank hiked its key interest rate from 8.5 to 12 per cent, after the ruble crashed to a more than 16-month low against the dollar.

“This decision was taken in order to limit the risks to price stability,” the central bank announced after an emergency meeting earlier in the day.

It warned that inflationary pressure was still rising, and said the bank risked missing its inflation target in 2024 if prices continued to increase at their current rate.

On Monday the currency fell to more than 100 rubles to the dollar, prompting one Kremlin aide to publicly criticise “loose monetary policy” in an op-ed published in state media.

RUSSIA THREATENS UK AIRSPACE

Two British aid workers killed in Ukraine could have been executed by Russian or Wagner fighters, their families fear.

It comes as British fighter jets intercepted two Russian “Bear” bombers after they threatened UK airspace in a brazen fly by.

According to a report in the Sun, Christopher Parry, 28, and Andrew Bagshaw, 48, were helping evacuate civilians from the frontline in the eastern Bakhmut region when they disappeared on January 6.

British aid worker Christopher Parry is feared to have been murdered by Wagner fighters. Picture: Supplied

Russian forces then flaunted passports belonging to the pair and claimed at least one was dead.

Pictures appearing to show their documents were posted online by the pro-Putin Wagner private army.

Later that month, Mr Parry’s family confirmed via the British Foreign Office that they were killed as they attempted a humanitarian evacuation from Soledar.

It was claimed they died in an artillery strike.

But Mr Bagshaw’s devastated parents Professor Philip and Dame Susan Bagshaw have since been investigating their son’s death and believe he and Mr Parry were murdered by Russian forces and probably Wagner mercenaries.

Brit Andrew Bagshaw was helping evacuated Ukrainian civilians when he disappeared. Picture: Supplied

“There’s a whole story here that’s not been told stuff.co.nz.

“He must have been subject to a war crime; how badly he was abused we’ll probably never know.”

They say a British post-mortem for Parry reveals he was shot in the head and torso, while a Ukraine post-mortem of Bagshaw showed the same.

The couple, who live in New Zealand, also claim Bagshaw’s mobile phone was unlocked two days after he went missing.

Professor Bagshaw added: “He was definitely shot. He may well have been abused.

“We don’t like to think how badly, but the report of his post-mortem is horrific.”

Wagner fighters in the Bakhmut region where Andrew Bagshaw and Christopher Parry went missing. Picture: Supplied

The pair also say they have spoken to a source in Ukraine who claimed Mr Bagshaw and Mr Parry were pulled from a car and shot over suspicions they were troop instructors from the NATO military alliance.

Professor Bagshaw believes the aid workers were killed by Wagner troops and is working with a lawyer.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said the government in New Zealand is supporting the investigation.

“The Government is backing the International Criminal Court’s independent investigation into allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine so cases like Andrew’s can be investigated,” he said.
Mr Hipkins added that A$2.5 million has been given to the International Criminal Court to support war crimes investigations.

The Wagner group is a private army, formerly led by Yevgeny Prigozhin.

It was supported by Mr Putin and used thousands of convicted criminals, including murderers and sex offenders on the front lines in Ukraine.

BRITISH JETS INTERCEPT RUSSIAN BOMBERS

It comes as British RAF “Typhoon” jets intercepted two Russian “Bear” bombers after they threatened UK airspace in a daring swoop.

According to The Sun, the two jets scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth to chase down the Cold War-era planes sent by Vladimir Putin’s forces.

The two fighter jets were supported by an RAF Voyager air-to-air refuelling tanker flying alongside them on the mission.

One of the Typhoons pictured flying alongside the Russian 'Bear' bomber near Scotland. Picture: Supplied

The British Royal Navy is also understood to have monitored the movements of a Russian corvette, RFS Merkuriy.

Mr Putin’s warship is believed to have passed through the English Channel last weekend.

The two incidents came amid ongoing tensions between the UK and Russia.

Dutch and Danish F-16s were also scrambled to track the two Bear bombers today as part of a joint NATO mission.

Russian planes and warships are often seen near the UK as they carry out missions around the North Sea and the Arctic.

British forces, however, are always on alert to monitor and intercept should Mr Putin’s air force get too close.

Typhoons are supersonic jets that can hit speeds of up to 2125km/h – with some 130 of the planes in service within the UK.

Pictures show the 'Bear' bomber flying close to the UK. Picture: Supplied

One of the Typhoon pilots who shadowed the Bears, who was not named, said “adrenaline kicked in” when the scramble alarm was sounded “in the early hours of the morning”.

“It’s really satisfying to know we’ve been able to make a successful intercept, maintaining the integrity of UK and NATO airspace,” the pilot said, according to The Sun.

“Working in tandem with ground control operators, and with air-to-air refuelling from an RAF Voyager, we were able to stay on task until the mission was complete, and the target aircraft departed the UK’s area of interest.” 

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the Russian planes involved in the latest incident were maritime patrol aircraft used for reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare.

MoD officials said the Russian bombers passed “north of the UK”.

The Typhoons’ base RAF Lossiemouth is in Moray on the North East coast of Scotland.

Dutch officials earlier confirmed the detection of two bombers flying close to Denmark and towards the Netherlands.

Danish F-16s were deployed and the aircraft were stopped before they entered NATO airspace.

It comes after the British RAF revealed they had taken part in 50 intercepts of Russian aircraft in just four months on the edge of Europe.

UKRAINE FIRES MILITARY LEADERS

Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused top military leaders in every region of Ukraine of “treason” as Russia made significant advances under a barrage of hypersonic missile attacks.

The Ukraine president fired all military officials overseeing conscription of fighting age men and women amid widespread corruption allegations.

It comes as Russia claimed it had recaptured significant swathes of territory in the east while bombing a vital airfield in the west with its devastating Kinzhal missiles.

Ukraine’s counteroffensive has meanwhile slowed to a crawl despite the influx of western aid and training, with Zelenskyy announcing those responsible for conscripting forces to fill its battalions would be replaced.

“We are dismissing all regional military commissars,” Zelensky said in a post on social media, following a meeting with senior commanders.

“This system should be run by people who know exactly what war is and why cynicism and bribery at a time of war is high treason,” he added.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired those responsible for conscripting Ukrainians, accusing them of corruption and treason. Picture: AFP

While he did not further explain the allegations, it is believed the commissars were accused of accepting bribes from people that didn't’ want to be sent to the frontline of fighting.

The move also reflects Ukraine’s efforts to clamp down on graft and corruption as part of sweeping reforms requested by Western institutions like the European Union, which Ukraine hopes to join.

“During the inspection of the territorial recruitment centres, law enforcement agencies exposed cases of corruption,” the presidency said in a separate statement.

It said Ukraine’s general mobilisation was a key area in which inspectors had uncovered instances of foul play.

These “pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security and undermine confidence in state institutions,” the statement said.

It added that Ukraine’s security council recommended that the head of the army select replacements who have battlefield experience and were vetted by Ukraine’s intelligence services.

Commissars, accused of “treason”, were responsible for conscripting fighting aged men and women. A Ukrainian serviceman helps a boy hold an antitank weapon. Picture: AFP

The boy posed for photos at a volunteers point in the centre of Kyiv. Picture: AFP

HYPERSONIC MISSILES BOMBARD UKRAINE

Russia fired four Kinzhal hypersonic missiles at an airfield in western Ukraine in an attack left one child dead, according to Ukraine officials.

“One Kh-47 missile was destroyed within the Kyiv region. The rest hit near the airfield. Civilian facilities and infrastructure were hit, and one of the missiles hit a residential area,” Ukraine’s air force said in a statement.

The brunt of fighting between Ukrainian forces and invading Russian troops has played out in the industrial east of the country but Moscow sporadically launches strikes targeting infrastructure in western Ukraine too.

Prosecutors earlier said the strikes in the western region of Ivano-Frankivsk had struck near a house in the regional hub of the same name.

“The missiles hit territory near a private house in the Kolomyia district, where a family with three children lived. An eight-year-old boy died as a result of the shelling,” their statement said.

Kinzhal missiles make up part of an arsenal of weapons that Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed were indestructible because of the speed at which they travel.

The air force said that Russia had launched the missiles from Tula, some 180 kilometres south of the Russian capital and Lipetsk, around 460 kilometres from Moscow.

RUSSIA ADVANCES IN NORTHEAST

Russia advanced fighting positions around the northeast Ukraine town of Kupiansk as Kyiv’s troops struggled with their counteroffensive in other areas.

Kupiansk and the surrounding areas of the northeast Kharkiv region were recaptured by Kyiv’s forces in September, but Moscow has since pushed back into the region, forcing Ukraine to order civilian evacuations.

According to Moscow’s defence ministry, Russian units had “continued offensive operations on a wide front and improved the tactical situation” in Vilshana and Pershotravneve to the east of Kupiansk.

The situation around Kupiansk was “difficult, given the power of the enemy group, but controlled”, said Sergiy Cherevaty, spokesman for Ukraine’s eastern forces.

Russia’s drive in Kupiansk has sought to draw Ukrainian forces away from Kyiv’s own counteroffensive.

Ukraine launched its highly anticipated push in June after stockpiling Western weapons, but has struggled to make headway in the face of stiff Russian resistance.

With AFP