What are the key conclusions from Putin and Kim's meeting in Russia?

The simplest way to characterise covering a meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin is as a caption competition: The Kremlin claimed that the two had "very substantive" discussions on Wednesday, but outside of a few picture ops, we still don't know much about what transpired in private.

At the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Amur Region, Putin and Kim shook hands. The North Korean leader then boarded Putin's Aurus limousine, which was made in Russia. Kim raised a toast to his counterpart, promising that Russia would punish "evil forces"—dictatorship speak that seemed to support Putin's horrifying, attrition-based war against Ukraine.

However, there was no press conference and no joint statement from the two parties. There were no trades made public. Even though the stakes for the summit in Russia's Far East are fairly high, determining the true takeaway will be difficult.

Sergei Shoigu, the Russian defence minister, travelled to Pyongyang in July with what appeared to be a shopping list. Russia's munitions inventories had been severely depleted after a year and a half of intense fighting in Ukraine, and US officials cautioned that Moscow and North Korea were considering possible agreements to restock supplies for Moscow's war on Ukraine. On the Korean peninsula, North Korea has a sizable arsenal.
If this is the agreement being negotiated in Russia—and there has been no indication to date that such a deal has been reached—it would put Pyongyang in competition with the industrial bases of the US and NATO members, which have been gradually but steadily arming Ukraine with the weapons it needs to fight Russia. It's a life-or-death struggle, and Putin seems to be betting that as the US enters the presidential election season, support for Ukraine will dwindle.
Additionally, Pyongyang might receive something in exchange. North Korea has been the focus of numerous rounds of sanctions due to its ballistic missile and nuclear programmes, leaving Kim's government in a very isolated position. Sanctions against North Korea have previously had support from even Russia.
When a reporter questioned Putin about helping North Korea "launch its own satellites and rockets" during a visit to the cosmodrome, Putin replied, "That's exactly why we came here."

"North Korea's leader exhibits a keen interest in space exploration and rocketry, and the country is working to develop space. We'll demonstrate our new items, Putin remarked.