What’s inside Kim Jong Un’s 90-coach bulletproof train? North Korean leader Kim Jong-un landed in Russia, having travelled from Pyongyang on his luxury armoured train to Vladivostok for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
According to the Guardian, this is Kim’s first trip abroad in more than four years, and the first since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kim spent 20 hours on the slow-moving green-and-yellow train, following a long-standing tradition followed by North Korean leaders. When it comes to international travel, he is well-known for his preference for train travel.
What’s inside Kim Jong Un’s 90-coach bulletproof train?
The train’s heavily armoured protection causes it to rattle at a speed of about 50km/h (31mph), which is much slower than most modern trains.
The mysterious dark green train, which has 90 carriages, also has tinted windows to conceal the identities of those aboard.
Each carriage is completely bulletproof, adding thousands of pounds to the train.
It also has a restaurant serving expensive French wine, as well as live lobster and pork barbeque.
In addition, the train has conference rooms, audience chambers, and bedrooms, as well as satellite phones and flat-screen televisions for briefings.
Kim Jong Un’s grandfather, Kim Il Sung, set the tradition of long-distance train travel after taking trips to Vietnam and Eastern Europe.
Also read: How worrying is a Russia-Kim Jong Un alliance?
Notably, the leader’s father, Kim Jong Il, was notoriously afraid of flying. In 2001, he travelled to Moscow for 10 days to meet with Mr. Putin.
Security personnel closely monitor these opulent trains and scan the routes and stations ahead for bombs and other threats.
Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s current leader, has continued the family tradition, believing that the armoured train provides greater security and luxury than flying.
According to NPR, he travelled 4,500 kilometres through China in his train to meet President Donald Trump in Vietnam. The trip took two and a half days.
Russian military commander Konstantin Pulikovsky also praised the train’s opulence, boasting that ”any dish of Russian, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, or French cuisine” could be ordered aboard.
Even Mr. Putin’s private train “did not have the comfort of Kim Jong Il’s train,” Mr. Pulikovsky observed.
Experts believe Putin is looking for artillery shells and antitank missiles from North Korea for Moscow’s war in Ukraine, while Kim is reportedly looking for advanced technology for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines, as well as food aid for his impoverished country.
He is accompanied by unidentified members of the ruling party, government, and military of the country.
