SEOUL, South Korea — Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to brief him on the war in Ukraine ahead of the Russian president’s planned summit with President Donald Trump in Alaska.

During the call on Tuesday, Putin thanked Kim for supporting his war on Ukraine as the two leaders “exchanged views on the issues of mutual concern,” North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said. The Kremlin had earlier said Putin shared information with Kim “in the context of the upcoming talks” with Trump.

“Kim Jong Un expressed firm conviction that the DPRK would always remain faithful to the spirit of the DPRK-Russia treaty and fully support all measures to be taken by the Russian leadership in the future,” KCNA said, referring to a mutual defense pact the

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