North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu discussed strengthening the “strategic and tactical coordination” of the armies of the two countriesNorth Korean media reported.

After Kim inspected Kinzhal strategic bombers and hypersonic missiles and visited a Pacific Fleet barracks near the city of Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East, Shoigu offered lunch to North Korean leaderwrote the official North Korean news agency KCNA.

Shoigu expressed, during the event, “desire to further deepen the friendship and cooperation between the defense ministries of the two countries”.

His North Korean counterpart Kang Sun-nam spoke of “further strengthening unity and cooperation with the Russian military and responsibly safeguarding regional and global peace and stability.”

According to the news agency, after the banquet, Shoigu and Kim “exchanged constructive views on practical issues related to strengthening strategic and tactical coordinationon cooperation and mutual exchanges between the armed forces of the two countries and in the fields of defense and national security”.

Kim and Shoigu met in Pyongyang in July, when the Russian minister proposed that North Korea hold joint naval exercises with Russia and China, according to South Korean intelligence.

After lunch, Kim watched the ballet “Sleeping Beauty.”KCNA added.

The North Korean leader met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday in Vostochny, about eight thousand kilometers east of Moscow.

No agreement has been signed between the two countriesRussian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

The United States has said it suspects Russia wants to buy weapons from Pyongyang to use in the war against Ukraine, while North Korea wants to acquire technology for its nuclear and ballistic programs.

Washington has warned Pyongyang that it will face consequences if it contributes to the Russian war effort in Ukraine.