The Pope and UN chief call for religious and environmental tolerance

Yahoo – AFP, December 20, 2019

Pope Francis handed the UN chief a copy of a document hailed as a milestone in
the dialogue between Christians and Muslims (AFP Photo/Filippo MONTEFORTE)

Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday jointly appealed for religious tolerance and environmental protection.

After a meeting at the Vatican, the pair released a video message.

"It is good that this meeting of ours takes place in the days leading up to Christmas,” the Argentinian Pope said in his native Spanish with Guterres by his side.

“We cannot, we must not look the other way when believers of various faiths are persecuted in different parts of the world,” the Pontiff added.

"It is a time of peace and goodwill and I am sad to see that Christian communities - including some of the oldest in the world - cannot safely celebrate Christmas," the UN Secretary-General said.

“Tragically we see Jews being murdered in synagogues, their gravestones defaced with swastikas; Muslims gunned down in mosques, their religious sites vandalised; Christians killed at prayers, their churches torched,” Guterres said.

'It is a time of peace and goodwill': UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres with
Pope Francis (AFP Photo/Filippo MONTEFORTE)

Repeating the message he made in November during a trip to Japan for a world without nuclear weapons, Francis said: "The use as well as possession of nuclear weapons... is also immoral."

The Pope also urged people to “take care of our land which, generation after generation, has been entrusted to our custody by God so that we may cultivate it and hand it over to our children.”

Guterres arrived in Rome five days after the UN's COP25 climate summit in Madrid and called on all countries around the globe to commit to carbon neutrality by 2050.

Francis gave his guest a copy of the “human fraternity for world peace and living together” declaration which was signed by the Pope and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, in the United Arab Emirates in February.

Considered a milestone in the dialogue between Christians and Muslims, the text calls for freedom of belief and expression, the protection of places of worship and advocates full citizenship for discriminated "minorities".

Guterres said the text was "extremely important when we see such dramatic attacks on religious freedom and the lives of believers".

The Secretary-General said the UN had launched an action plan to safeguard religious sites and a strategy to combat hate speech.

In Hiroshima, pope assails 'crime' of nuclear weapons

Yahoo – AFP, Catherine MARCIANO, November 24, 2019

Pope Francis met a series of religious leaders and survivors of the nuclear
holocaust in Hiroshima (AFP Photo/Vincenzo PINTO)

Nagasaki (Japan) (AFP) - Pope Francis Sunday described the use of nuclear bombs as "a crime", as he took his appeal for an end to atomic weapons to Hiroshima in an emotional meeting with survivors.

The visit came hours after a highly symbolic stop in the city of Nagasaki, where Francis railed against all nuclear weapons, including their use as a deterrent.

At least 140,000 people died after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, with another 74,000 killed after a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later.

"In barely an instant, everything was devoured by a black hole of destruction and death. From that abyss of silence, we continue even today to hear the cries of those who are no longer," Francis said at the Peace Memorial in Hiroshima.

"With deep conviction, I wish once more to declare that the use of atomic energy for purposes of war is today, more than ever, a crime not only against the dignity of human beings but against any possible future for our common home," he added.

Hiroshima was the first city to suffer an atomic attack (AFP Photo)

He first signed the book of remembrance, saying he would "grieve in solidarity" with the victims, receiving warm applause from the assembled worshippers.

He then clasped hands with several elderly survivors, some of them overcome with emotion on meeting the 82-year-old pontiff and sharing their harrowing testimony.

Francis has made the call for a world without nuclear weapons a central theme of his four-day trip to Japan, starting his visit in two cities synonymous with the horrors of the atomic bomb.

He said he felt a "duty to come here as a pilgrim of peace" and paid tribute to the "strength and dignity" of those who survived the attack and the physical and emotional toll of the aftermath.

Like in Nagasaki earlier on Sunday, he laid a wreath of white flowers as a tribute and bowed his head in prayer before a moment of reflection with deep bells tolling in the background to remember those killed in the catastrophe.

Pope Francis spoke while standing next to a photo of a 

young boy carrying his dead baby brother on his back 

in the aftermath of the Nagasaki nuclear bomb 

attack (AFP Photo/Vincenzo PINTO)

True peace is 'unarmed': Francis

Survivors from Hiroshima described to the pope their personal experiences and backed his abolitionist message, including Yoshiko Kajimoto, who was 14 at the time of the attack.

She recalled "people walking side by side like ghosts," telling Francis: "No one in this world can imagine such a scene of hell."

The ageing survivors of the attacks have expressed fear that the memory of the bombings may disappear after their death, and some hope the pope will bring renewed attention to their stories.

"I believe that passing on the experience of Hiroshima to the next generation is the final mission assigned to us A-bomb survivors," survivor Koji Hosokawa told Francis in testimony read out as he was unable to attend.

In Hiroshima, the Argentine pontiff repeated his insistence that there was no place in the world for nuclear weapons, even as a deterrent.

Francis delivered communion to the faithful at a Mass 

in Nagasaki (AFP Photo/Ed JONES)

This marks a break with past pontiffs -- in a 1982 UN speech, Pope John Paul II described nuclear deterrence as a necessary evil.

"How can we propose peace if we constantly invoke the threat of nuclear war as a legitimate recourse for the resolution of conflicts?" Francis said.

"A true peace can only be an unarmed peace."

In Nagasaki earlier, he also took aim at the arms industry, describing money spent and made on weapons as an "affront crying out to Heaven".

'Fondness and affection'

The Argentine pontiff is fulfilling a long-held ambition to preach in Japan -- a country he wanted to visit as a young missionary.

Pope Francis kissed a baby in Nagasaki (AFP Photo/Ed JONES)

"Ever since I was young I have felt a fondness and affection for these lands," said Francis when he arrived in Japan.

As in Thailand, the first leg of his Asian tour, Catholicism is a minority religion in Japan.

Most people follow a mix of Shinto and Buddhism, with only an estimated 440,000 Catholics in the country.

Christians in Japan suffered centuries of repression, being tortured to recant their faith, and Francis paid tribute in Nagasaki to the martyrs who died for their religion, saying they had inspired him as a young Jesuit.

Francis returns to Tokyo on Sunday night where he will on Monday meet victims of Japan's "triple disaster" -- the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown.

He is also scheduled to deliver a mass at a Tokyo baseball stadium, meet Japan's new Emperor Naruhito and hold talks with Japanese government officials and local Catholic leaders.

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"Fast-Tracking" - Feb 8, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Reference to Fukushima / H-bomb nuclear pollution and a warning about nuclear  (> 20 Min)

"A Summary" – Apr 2, 2011 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Religion, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Intelligent/Benevolent Design, EU, South America, 5 Currencies, Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Middle East, Internet, Israel, Dictators, Palestine, US, Japan (Quake/Tsunami Disasters , People, Society ...), Nuclear Power Revealed, Hydro Power, Geothermal Power, Moon, Financial Institutes (Recession, Realign integrity values ..) , China, North Korea, Global Unity,..... etc.) - (Text version)

“... Japan

Let us talk for a moment about Japan, and then I'll close the day of messages. There are thousands of souls on my side of the veil and they're just fine, more than fine. We have spoken so often of what happens at the Wind of Birth. I told you, before they even came in, they saw the potential. I looked in their eyes. "You may not last long. You know that, don't you? You're coming into this planet and you may not be here very long. And the passing that you will have with your family will not be pleasant, if any ever are. Why would you come in anyway?" I want to tell you what they said. When a soul has the mind of God, it understands fully what generates peace and what generates energy shift. You can clearly see what generates what the planet needs the most when you are about to arrive. So they said, "We're going to be part of one of the biggest compassion events the planet has ever seen." One earthquake, one tsunami. All of those who left that day will change the earth forever. And it already has. It was the same for the last tsunami as well.

Every single one of them on my side of the veil is getting ready to come back. Many old souls were involved, and just for a moment, if they could give you any information, if they could talk to you right now, if they could speak your language and look into your eyes, they would thank you for your compassion for them and those who are left. And they would say, "Be with those family members who are still alive. Enter their hearts every day and give them peace and keep them from crying, because we're OK."

Nuclear Power Revealed

So let me tell you what else they did. They just showed you what's wrong with nuclear power. "Safe to the maximum," they said. "Our devices are strong and cannot fail." But they did. They are no match for Gaia.

It seems that for more than 20 years, every single time we sit in the chair and speak of electric power, we tell you that hundreds of thousands of tons of push/pull energy on a regular schedule is available to you. It is moon-driven, forever. It can make all of the electricity for all of the cities on your planet, no matter how much you use. There's no environmental impact at all. Use the power of the tides, the oceans, the waves in clever ways. Use them in a bigger way than any designer has ever put together yet, to power your cities. The largest cities on your planet are on the coasts, and that's where the power source is. Hydro is the answer. It's not dangerous. You've ignored it because it seems harder to engineer and it's not in a controlled environment. Yet, you've chosen to build one of the most complex and dangerous steam engines on Earth - nuclear power.

We also have indicated that all you have to do is dig down deep enough and the planet will give you heat. It's right below the surface, not too far away all the time. You'll have a Gaia steam engine that way, too. There's no danger at all and you don't have to dig that far. All you have to do is heat fluid, and there are some fluids that boil far faster than water. So we say it again and again. Maybe this will show you what's wrong with what you've been doing, and this will turn the attitudes of your science to create something so beautiful and so powerful for your grandchildren. Why do you think you were given the moon? Now you know.

This benevolent Universe gave you an astral body that allows the waters in your ocean to push and pull and push on the most regular schedule of anything you know of. Yet there you sit enjoying just looking at it instead of using it. It could be enormous, free energy forever, ready to be converted when you design the methods of capturing it. It's time.

So in closing, do you understand what you're seeing? You're seeing intelligent design, quantum energy and high consciousness. You are seeing changes in Human nature. You're seeing countries putting things together instead of separating. You are seeing those who don't want war and instead want peace, good schools for their children, safety in their streets and a say in their government. We told you it was going to happen this way. I want my partner to teach these things that I have said in his 3D lectures for awhile. Many won't be able to know these things otherwise.  …”

Trump ready to meet Iranian president in potential breakthrough

Yahoo – AFP, Sebastian Smith, Adam Plowright and Stuart Williams, 26 August 2019

Donald Trump said he would meet his Iranian counterpart Hassan
Rouhani 'if the circumstances were correct'

US President Donald Trump said Monday at the G7 summit that he is prepared to meet his Iranian counterpart within weeks in what would amount to a stunning change of direction in the two countries' smouldering standoff.

The potential breakthrough was announced by Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, who said he would facilitate the first face-to-face meeting between the US president and the Iranians.

The surprise news came after Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif made a dramatic, unscheduled appearance on the sidelines of the summit held in Biarritz on Sunday at the invitation of Macron.

The 41-year-old French leader said the "conditions for a meeting" between Trump and Iran's Hassan Rouhani "in the next few weeks" had been created through intensive diplomacy and consultations.

"If the circumstances were correct, I would certainly agree to that," Trump said at a press conference with Macron at the end of three days of G7 talks.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif made a surprise visit to the G7

Asked if he thought the timeline proposed by his French counterpart was realistic, Trump replied: "It does."

Trump was equally confident that Rouhani would be in favour.

"I think he's going to want to meet. I think Iran wants to get this situation straightened out," he added.

Both men will be in New York for the UN General Assembly at the end of September which could provide the stage for the talks.

Trump has put in place a policy of "maximum pressure" on Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme via crippling sanctions that critics see as raising the risk of conflict in the Middle East between the United States and Iran.

The US president last year unilaterally pulled out of a landmark 2015 international deal that placed limits on Tehran's nuclear activities in exchange for trade, investment and sanctions relief. Trump said the deal gave the Iranians cover to keep pursuing a secret nuclear military programme which they insist does not exist.

Earlier this month, Trump lambasted Macron for sending 'mixed signals' on Iran

Rouhani appeared to accept the idea of opening to talks with Washington.

"I believe that for our country's national interests we must use any tool," Rouhani said of Zarif's Biarritz visit in a speech aired live on state television on Monday.

But hardliners criticised the initiative, with the ultra-conservative Kayhan newspaper saying the trip was "improper" and sent "a message of weakness and desperation."

'Real progress'

Macron has urged the US administration to offer some sort of relief to Iran, such as lifting sanctions on oil sales to China and India, and has raised the possibility of a new credit line to enable exports.

In return, Iran would return to complying with the 2015 deal.

Commenting on the talks about Iran at the G7, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said: "It's a big step forward. Now there is an atmosphere in which talks are welcomed."

Raging fires in the Amazon rainforest were on the G7 agenda

Macron and Trump hailed the common ground found by G7 leaders at their summit, which was dominated by the Iranian nuclear crisis, global trade tensions and fires in the Amazon.

"We have managed to find real points of convergence, unprecedented, very positive, that will allow us to go forward in a very useful way," Macron told the press conference.

Trump said Macron had done a "fantastic job" at the G7.

"This was a very special, a very unified two and a half days and I want to thank you," Trump told his host.

Just a few weeks ago, Trump lambasted Macron for sending "mixed signals" on Iran, and at the end of July the US administration imposed sanctions on Zarif.

Macron acknowledged there had been "nervousness" ahead of the summit because of tensions between the US and Europe on a host of issues.

"A lot depends on the return to the United States of Donald Trump and the way he manages everything," analyst Thomas Gomart from the French foreign affairs think-tank IFRI told AFP.

US-China tariff hikes

Trade war worries

Commenting on his escalating trade war with China, Trump held out hope of a deal to thaw the bruising year-long dispute that has seen tariffs imposed on billions of dollars' worth of goods by both sides.

"I can say we are having very meaningful talks, much more meaningful, I would say, than at any time," he had said at a press conference with Merkel.

Trump said senior Chinese officials had been in contact, though there was no confirmation from the Chinese side.

"I'm not sure they have a choice (on making a deal)," he said. "I don't mean that as a threat. I don't think they have a choice."

Trump arrived in the famed surfing town of Biarritz on Saturday shortly after upping the ante in his trade war with a new round of increased tariffs on Chinese goods.

European leaders have lined up to urge caution and warn about the danger of recession from the conflict.

Macron met Brazil's indigenous chief Raoni Metuktire of the Kayapo people

for talks in Biarritz on Monday evening

'Preserve our lands'

On the final day of the summit, the G7 agenda also included action to help fight fires destroying swaths of the Amazon.

The members agreed to spend $20 million (18 million euros) on the world's biggest rainforest, mainly to send firefighting aircraft to tackle blazes.

Macron said later they also hoped to raise "at least 30 million" dollars for a reforestation plan, to be discussed at the UN in September.

On Monday evening, he held talks in Biarritz with Brazilian indigenous chief Raoni Metuktire who said he had asked the French leader to "help us preserve our lands".

Trump was less vocal on this issue than his partners.

He also stood out from the rest of the G7 leaders in his budding friendship with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, a former army officer who has given freer rein to industrial farmers and loggers who have made the country an agribusiness power -- at a huge cost to the environment.

Macron had threatened to block an extensive new trade deal between the European Union and Latin America unless Bolsonaro takes serious steps to combat global warming.

Japan urged to sign UN nuke ban on Hiroshima anniversary

Yahoo – AFP, August 6, 2019

Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui (R) used the 74th anniversary of the atomic bombing 
of the city to urge the administration to sign the UN treaty on the prohibition of 
nuclear weapons (AFP Photo/JIJI PRESS)

The mayor of Hiroshima urged Japan to sign a landmark UN treaty banning nuclear weapons as the city Tuesday marked 74 years since being targeted in the world's first atomic attack.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe led commemorations at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima as residents offered silent prayers, lit candles and placed wreathes to remember those killed in the August 6, 1945 bombing.

And mayor Kazumi Matsui used the occasion to push the Abe administration to sign the UN treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons (TPNW), approved by more than 120 nations, but rejected by the US and other nuclear armed countries.

"I call on the government of the only country to experience a nuclear weapon in war to accede to the hibakusha's (atomic bomb victims) request that the TPNW be signed and ratified," said Matsui.

"I urge Japan's leaders to manifest the pacifism of the Japanese constitution by displaying leadership in taking the next step towards a world free from nuclear weapons."

The mayor urged world leaders to come to the city to see the memorial for themselves, amid expectations that Pope Francis will visit later this year.

Graphic on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in Japan on August 6, 1945 

(AFP Photo/AFP)

The ongoing threat from atomic weapons in the region was demonstrated as nuclear-armed North Korea fired off two "unidentified projectiles" off its eastern coast -- the latest in a series of tests.

Meanwhile, the US and Russia failed to renew a Cold War-era nuclear pact last week, triggering renewed fears of an arms race.

Japan remains the only country to have experienced atomic attack -- against Hiroshima and Nagasaki, days ahead of the country's surrender on August 15, 1945 to end World War II.

For his part, Abe reiterated a pledge to serve as a "bridge" between nations with and without nuclear weapons to rid the world of them.

"With help from both sides, I will patiently encourage them to engage in dialogue and I am resolved to lead international efforts towards this end," he said.

141 countries joined in drafting the treaty that they hope will increase pressure

on nuclear states to take disarmament more seriously  (AFP Photo/Amanda VOISARD)

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nuclear blasts on Runit Island, in the Marshall Islands, the fallout from

which is expected to last 25,000 years (US Defence Nuclear Agency/AFP)

Marshall Islands sues nine nuclear powers over failure to disarm

Islanders afraid to go home 60 years after Bikini Atoll H-bomb

Ten nations urge new push for non-proliferation - (30 April 2011)

“.. Westerwelle told journalists that the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the international Nuclear Test Ban Treaty should be adopted by all countries, adding that the production and mining of all fissile material for nuclear weapons should be banned internationally. He called for resuscitating the Geneva Disarmament Convention.

Attending the talks with Germany were Japan, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Chile, Poland, Mexico, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

Last year, these countries formed the group Friends of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. ..”

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"Fast-Tracking" - Feb 8, 2014 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Reference to Fukushima / H-bomb nuclear pollution and a warning about nuclear  (> 20 Min)

"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“…  8 - The End of War

The last one is the best. For thousands of years on this planet, Human Beings have warred with each other. If you take a look at the reasons they warred with each other, you will quickly see there aren't any good ones - land, resources, greed. Those are not reasons. That is a description of old energy. Those are not reasons. Reasons would be perhaps defense against an aggressor. But what if there is no longer the consciousness of the aggressor?

When I appeared in my partner's life more than 20 years ago, I said to him privately that the first messages we're going to give will be unbelievable. There would be laughter. We told him that Human nature and consciousness itself would change, and that the seeds of peace would be planted and there would come a time where there is no more war. Indeed, the laughter was great because humans look at history and they see patterns based on an absolute energy called Human Nature. "Impossible! There always has to be war. There always has been. Therefore, there always will be." This is you, in a box, in a black and white potential, where you can only see the black and white of what is and the black and white of what has been. You have no idea the shades of color that are there in your consciousness and the beauty of the love of God.

North Korea is on the edge of change, as we told you it might be. What did this require? The death of the old energy, and I want you to watch this take place. The advisors of the young leader are going to do their best to pull him back into an old energy. This free choice of his will be far different than his father, for he sees some color. Watch for these things. They'll take longer than you want, but it is the beginning of the beginning.

You'll see a fresh unification of South America sooner than not, for what is going to take place potentially this year in Venezuela. You'll see Iran changing. We have no clock. These are the potentials. These can change with free choice. These are not prophecies. This is a reality shift, dear ones, so number eight becomes the propensity not to war again. This is what Humans are going to want. This is what governments are going to want. There is a wisdom factor that will begin to happen on the planet that is grander than what you think is possible. For when you look at government, what do you think about? You see dysfunction, and there is an axiom that says the more people that try to do something together, the worse it gets. It all settles to the lowest common denominator. I'm telling you even those things are going to become old energy concepts. Instead, you're going to watch wisdom become the top potential.

I have no clock. I cannot tell you when. I can just tell you it is in the works, and there will be the seeds of it for you to observe soon - right now, in every single of the eight categories I showed you.

There are those who will say, "Well, Kryon, you're doing a lot more predictions than you used to." I want to tell you what's going on, dear one. I am not predicting anything. I am just telling you what's already there in the potential soup of your reality. That's what Humans are doing on this planet, and for those who believe this communication, you should breathe a sigh of relief and say, "It's about time." ….”

Putin urges new arms talks with US to avoid 'chaos'

Yahoo – AFP, Maria ANTONOVA, August 5, 2019

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that without new talks, there was a risk
of an 'uncontrolled arms race' (AFP Photo/Yuri KADOBNOV)

Moscow (AFP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday urged the United States to begin new arms talks after the collapse of a Cold War nuclear pact between the two world powers.

Moscow and Washington tore up the Intermediate Range Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty on Friday, triggering fears of a new arms race.

"In order to avoid chaos that has no rules, limits and laws, one needs to once again weigh all possible dangerous consequences and start serious dialogue without any ambiguities," Putin said in a statement.

"We are ready for it."

Moscow has blamed Washington for unilaterally ending the 1987 treaty which was signed by US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

The agreement limited the use of conventional and nuclear missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometres (310 to 3,420 miles).

Washington and NATO accused Russia of developing the new 9M729 missile which they say violates the treaty, but Russia says its range falls short of 500 kilometres

'Risk of uncontrolled arms race'

Putin said Monday that if Russia receives information about US development of new missiles, it "will be forced to begin the full-scale development of similar missiles".

Russia "will not deploy them in relevant regions until American-made missiles are deployed there," Putin said.

Unless there are new talks about strategic security, "this scenario means restarting an uncontrolled arms race," he added.

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said at the weekend that he would like to deploy the new intermediate-range missiles in Asia, but denied that this would spark an arms race as the weapons are not nuclear.

"Right now, we don't have plans to build nuclear-tipped INF range weapons," he said. "So I don't see an arms race happening."

The INF treaty was considered a cornerstone of global arms control architecture, but Washington has long called it obsolete due to non-signatories like China being free to develop their own weapons.

Putin on Monday accused the US of "seriously complicating the situation in the world and creating fundamental risks for all" by pulling out of the treaty.

Washington launched a six-month withdrawal procedure for leaving the treaty in February, and Moscow followed soon after.

Any new treaty to counter the build-up of nuclear missiles would have to include China, US President Donald Trump said last week.

The other key arms deal between Russia and the US is the New START treaty which keeps the nuclear arsenals of both countries well below their Cold War peak.

The deal expires in 2021 and it is likely not to be renewed amid the current chill in US-Russian relations, experts say.

The US and Russia own more than 90 percent of global nuclear stockpiles, according to the Council on Foreign Relations, a US think tank.

Never mind the substance, here's the visuals: Putin summit a win for Kim

Yahoo – AFP, Sunghee Hwang, April 25, 2019

The mere fact of a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin was a
diplomatic boost for Kim Jong Un, analysts say (AFP Photo/Alexey NIKOLSKY)

The first summit between Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin was short on public content but the mere fact of it was a diplomatic boost for Pyongyang in its nuclear stalemate with the US, analysts said.

Thursday's talks in Vladivostok were the North Korean leader's first meeting with another head of state since returning from his February summit with US President Donald Trump in Hanoi, which broke down without a deal on Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal.

In Russia, Kim said little about the specifics of his discussions with Putin, preferring promises of strengthening traditional ties -- and did not mention the word "denuclearisation" once in public.

There was no joint statement -- and the Kremlin had said beforehand there would not be.

The Russian president told reporters that, like Washington, Moscow wanted to see "complete denuclearisation", but added that North Korea's security should be guaranteed, without going into detail.

Despite the limited substance, analysts say Kim got exactly what he was looking for: a strong handshake with Putin in front of international media.

And unlike some other occasions, the Russian president did not keep his guest waiting.

"The summit was heavy on diplomatic symbolism rather than actual cooperation, but the meeting itself is an achievement for Kim," said Shin Beom-chul of the Asan Institute of Policy Studies.

It was the latest chapter in the North Korean leader's summit diplomacy, aimed at chipping away some of the negative public image of his regime, analysts said.

For six years after inheriting power, the North Korean leader was an international recluse and remained within his borders.

But since March 2018, he has held meetings four times with Chinese President Xi Jinping, three with South Korea's Moon Jae-in, two with Trump and one each with Vietnam's president and Singapore's prime minister.

"Kim understands there is clearly a benefit in just holding a summit," said Harry Kazianis of the Center for National Interest ahead of the talks.

"All Kim needs to be successful is images of him shaking Putin's hand -- a sort of selfie diplomacy with summit pictures being plastered all over the media -- to prove to the world he is a global statesman."

Wining and dining

In Thursday's expanded meeting, Kim was accompanied only by Ri Yong Ho and Choe Son Hui -- his foreign minister and vice foreign minister.

Opposite them sat about a dozen Russians, among them officials handling economic cooperation with the North, such as mothballed gas pipeline and power grid projects.

Their North Korean counterparts did not travel to Russia with Kim and their absence showed that reviving such joint projects was nowhere near the top of Pyongyang's agenda, said Koo Kab-woo, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies.

For the North, the main goal of the summitry was finding "another exit" -- an alternative option to China -- Koo said, and seek more international support in its nuclear stand-off against Washington.

At the meeting with Trump in Hanoi, the cash-strapped North demanded immediate relief from sanctions imposed over its weapons programmes, but the talks broke up in disagreement over what Pyongyang was prepared to give up in return.

Since then, North Korea has carried out a new weapons test and demanded the removal from negotiations of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo -- who said Wednesday that he expected "bumpy" talks ahead with Pyongyang.

North Korea will expect the sight of Kim and Putin wining and dining together to prompt Washington to return to the negotiating table with a better offer, Koo said.