Russian leader Vladimir Putin has held a phone conversation with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to brief him on the progress of the war in Ukraine and thank him for his support ahead of Friday's meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska.

Putin during the call on Tuesday praised the “bravery, heroism and self-sacrificing spirit” displayed by North Korean troops as they fought with Russian forces to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region,

SEOUL: Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un have vowed to strengthen cooperation, days ahead of Putin's summit in Alaska with Donald Trump, Pyongyang's state media rep