Russia's defense minister has emphasized his country's intention to further develop military cooperation with North Korea.

The Russian defense ministry announced that Sergei Shoigu met his North Korean counterpart, Kang Sun Nam, for talks in Pyongyang on Wednesday.

Shoigu is making the visit to attend events marking the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice on Thursday.

He said postwar interaction between the two countries, such as mutual port calls of warships, visits by delegations and personnel training, has contributed to the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

Shoigu said North Korea is an important partner of Russia. He added that he is confident that the talks will help strengthen cooperation between their defense departments.

North Korea has made no announcement on the latest talks. But it has repeatedly expressed support for Russia since it started its invasion of Ukraine.

Attention is focused on whether North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet with Shoigu during his stay.