Kim Un travels in train to meet Putin in Russia

AGENCY REPORT

The President of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, will be traveling in a train for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Russia. He is expected to arrive the port city Vladivostok in a bulletproof train later September.

Trailing a long-standing tradition of North Korean leaders, Kim Un will be on the rail for over 20 hours traveling some 1,180km (733 miles) on the slow-moving locomotive.

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The train rails at the speed of about 50km/h (31mph) because of its heavy armoured protection.

The high-speed rail in London runs at about 200km/h, and Japan’s Shinkansen bullet trains runs at about 320 km/h.

Kim Un travels in train to meet Putin in Russia

The train that will be conveying Kim Un has been named Taeyangho, Korean word for the sun, and a symbolic reference to North Korea’s founder Kim Il Sung.

It was highlighted that the tradition of long-distance travel via train was started by the North Korea founder, Kim Il Sung – Kim Jong Un’s grandfather – who took his own train on trips to Vietnam and eastern Europe.

These luxurious trains were heavily guarded by security agents who scan routes and upcoming stations for bombs and other threats.

Kim Jong Un’s father, Kim Jong Il, who ruled North Korea from 1994 until his death in 2011, reportedly traveled by train out of necessity because he was afraid of flying.

Kim Jong Il famously traveled for 10 days to Moscow in 2001 to meet with Putin.

The North Korea leader is keeping the tradition of brevity left behind by his grandfathers in the leadership of the country.

While the motive of such journey at the initial stage reflected the feelings of the time, modern technology has made it unattractive, risky, hazardous, unnecessary and impracticable.