N. Korean leader arrives in Russia

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with more quotes, background; TRIMS headline) SEOUL, Aug. 20 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il arrived in Russia by train on Saturday, a government source here said. "We understand Chairman Kim's special train pulled into Khasan Station at about 10 a.m. after crossing the North Korean border into Russia and that a welcoming ceremony is happening there," the source said. The arrival in Khasan, a city in the Russian Far East, was delayed two to three hours than scheduled. It came one day after South Korean lawmakers said the North Korean leader would likely visit Russia soon, citing a report by the nation's intelligence agency. Kim is expected to visit a dam in Ussuriysk, 112 kilometers north of Vladivostok, after passing through Khasan, according to other sources well informed on relations between North Korea and Russia. Earlier in the day, an informed source in Moscow said Kim will hold summit talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Ulan Ude, the third-largest city in eastern Siberia, on Tuesday. A Seoul official says the North Korean leader may meet with both the Russian president and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin given that the length of his visit will be about a week. The official said whether the North's successor-designate Jong-un accompanied his father remains unknown. "Since the North Korean leader did not take his son with him during his latest trip to China, this time will highly likely be the same," he said. The official also said it is unlikely for Kim to travel to Moscow given the short length of the trip.