cosmodrome

Last month a Soyuz rocket decorated to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany blasted off from the Baikonur cosmodrome.

The pair last met in September, when Mr Kim visited the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Russian Far East.

After the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union, Russia leased the Baikonur Cosmodrome from Kazakhstan and continued to use it for most of its space launches.

Mr Putin welcomed Mr Kim to the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Russian Far East last September, in what was his first trip abroad in four years.

Experts say the decision to meet Putin at Vostochny Cosmodrome, a major satellite launch facility in the Russian Far East, hinted at Kim’s desire to seek Russian technology assistance over spy satellites.