Kim welcomes fellow Putin ally Lukashenko with fanfare

Mar 25: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Pyongyang on Wednesday with a white-horse cavalry and 21-gun salute, cementing ties between two close allies of Russia's Vladimir Putin.

Kim has provided Moscow with millions of rounds of ammunition for its war in Ukraine and sent troops to help Russia expel Ukrainian forces who invaded its western Kursk region. Lukashenko allowed Belarus to be used as a launchpad for Russia's invasion in February 2022, and subsequently agreed to host Russian tactical nuclear missiles on its territory, which borders three NATO alliance countries.

Kim greeted Lukashenko with an embrace and laid on a lavish ?welcome ceremony with ranks of soldiers, cavalry and the gun salute after flag-waving children had cheered his arrival at the airport. 

Lukashenko's foreign minister, Maxim Ryzhenkov, told Belarusian state media that the two sides would sign a friendship and cooperation treaty during the two-day visit.

Current trade was "modest" but there was potential to boost it in sectors including food and pharmaceuticals, he said.

Valery Tsepkalo, a prominent exiled opponent of Lukashenko, said there was no substance to the summit beyond a display of solidarity. "There will be no benefit to Belarus from this visit. 

The same for North Korea. They are just demonstrating that they're not isolated and they can have a meeting. They don't have any normal trade," he told.    �"REUTERS