Vladimir Putin sends 447 goats as gift to North Korean president Kim Jong-un

Russia is shipping more than 400 goats to North Korea in the latest sign of improving relations between the two countries.

North Korean state media said the goats would provide an uninterrupted supply of dairy products to children in the country’s Nampo municipality. Further deliveries of farm animals from Russia are expected

Kim Jong-un, the North Korean dictator, and President Putin signed a new strategic partnership treaty during a visit by the Russian leader to Pyongyang in June. The visit was his first to the isolated East Asian state since 2000.

Russia’s state veterinary service, Rosselkhoznadzor, said that 432 non-pregnant female goats and 15 male goats have been sent to a Korean trading company.

Kim Jong-un gave Putin two Pungsan dogs, a local breed, during his visit.

Moscow sent 30 grey thoroughbred horses to Pyongyang in 2022. Kim is believed to be a keen rider.

Although Russia and North Korea have had friendly relations since the Soviet era, the Kremlin is seeking to boost ties as part of its attempt to forge an anti-western coalition.

Russian state television has hailed Moscow’s alliance with Pyongyang as part of “the fight against the global imperialism of the United States and its satellites”.

North Korea has backed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is believed to have provided artillery shells for Moscow’s army as well as a limited number of ballistic missiles.

President Zelensky of Ukraine said that Russia had used a North Korean missile to attack Kyiv on Saturday night, August 10, which killed a father and his four-year-old son.