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SEOUL : Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il a medal marking the end of World War II, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
Kim received the medal in person "commemorating the 60th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War" from Russia's envoy on behalf of Putin, the agency said. It is rare for the secretive leader to attend award ceremonies.
"A ceremony of conveying the medal took place in grand style Tuesday. Kim Jong-Il was present there," the agency said without specifying the venue.
The reclusive leader, who was accompanied by ranking North Korean government, military and communist party officials at the ceremony, expressed gratitude to Putin, it said.
In a seperate dispatch, the agency said Kim and his entourage attended a reception held "in a cordial atmosphere" by Ambassador Andrei Gennadiyevich Karlov at the Russian embassy in Pyongyang.
"He expressed thanks for the kind invitation and had an amicable and friendly talk with the ambassador before posing for a photograph with the staff members of the embassy," it said.
Russia is preparing for a grand event on May 9 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, inviting some 60 world leaders to the ceremony in Moscow.
South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun has accepted an invitation to attend the celebrations. North Korea's head of state has also been invited but it was uncertain whether a delegate from the communist state would attend. - AFP
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