Trending 
A passenger plane from Pyongyang landed at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport on Tuesday, marking the first direct flight between the North Korean and Russian capitals in decades.
This event signals a deepening of ties between the two nations.
The Nordwind Airlines Boeing 777, which had already completed a flight from Moscow to Pyongyang on Sunday, returned to the Russian capital at 0750 GMT, completing its inaugural round trip.
According to Russia’s state RIA news agency, the 440-seater aircraft was “full,” primarily with North Korean passengers.
Russian diplomat Matvei Krivosheyev, a passenger on the flight, was quoted as saying it was the first such journey in nearly three decades, expressing confidence that the route “will be in demand both by Russian tourists and by Korean comrades.”
This development comes as Russia and North Korea have forged increasingly close ties in recent years, with Pyongyang reportedly supplying troops and weapons for Russia’s military operations in Ukraine.
The two countries further solidified their relationship last year with a mutual defence pact signed during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to the reclusive state.
In April, North Korea confirmed for the first time that it had deployed its soldiers to the frontlines in Ukraine alongside Russian forces.
