Nato and US officials have described Vladimir Putin’s visit to Pyongyang as a mark of desperation from the Russian leader. Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, told reporters on Tuesday 18 June that Russia was trying “to develop and to strengthen relations with countries that can provide it with what it needs to continue the war of aggression that it started against Ukraine.” North Korea is under heavy UN Security Council economic sanctions over its nuclear weapons and missile programs, while Russia is also grappling with sanctions by the United States and its Western partners over its war in Ukraine.