NORTH KOREA-RUSSIA SUMMIT

[Anchor Lead]

Amid prospects of an impending North Korea-Russia summit, a new flight schedule has appeared at Vladivostok International Airport. It has been found that a plane from the North Korean airline Air Koryo is scheduled to land in Vladivostok, and observers believe it's all part of preparations for the summit.

[Pkg]

A flight schedule itinerary for Vladivostok International Airport. It confirms a passenger plane "Ty-204" of North Korea's Air Koryo leaving Pyongyang on April 23rd to arrive at Vladivostok airport at 11 a.m. that day. Regular flights between the two destinations run twice a week, on Monday and Friday. Suddenly, an extra flight has been added. An official at Vladivostok airport has confirmed this fact.

[Soundbite] Airport Official : "There is an additional schedule but you need to ask the airline for accurate information."

However, the Air Koryo website does not indicate this information. The omission may be due to security reasons relating to the special flight. A North Korean Air Koryo official however denies it altogether, saying there is no flight headed to Vladivostok on April 23rd. According to local sources, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Vladimir Putin could hold summit talks on April 24th, a day after the special flight lands in Russia. After the summit, Putin is expected to fly to Beijing to attend the Belt and Road Forum.