Kremlin officials say they are arranging for Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit North Korea. He has seen his troops run short of ammunition on the battlefields of Ukraine and has turned to his allies to replenish the stocks.

Putin received an invitation from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last September when they met in the Amur region in Russia's Far East.

Kremlin officials have not revealed many details, but they said Putin could go as early as next week as part of a tour that would also include a stop in Vietnam.

Western leaders have seen Russian forces deplete their arsenal during more than two years of fighting. They have accused authorities in North Korea of providing their allies with ballistic missiles and other munitions.

The North Koreans have needs of their own after failing their attempt to launch another spy satellite last month. They have promised to launch three this year, and South Korean intelligence analysts say they are getting help from Russia.

It would be Putin's second trip to the North after he visited Pyongyang in 2000, the first year of his presidency.