SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin met with North Korea’s foreign minister and thanked Pyongyang for supporting his war against Ukraine, in the latest high-level diplomacy between the countries, Russian state media reported.
The visit by North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui comes without an obvious occasion, such as a multilateral diplomatic event or state anniversary, and has raised speculation that she may be coordinating a possible visit to Russia by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. North Korean state media said Choe departed for Russia on Saturday at the invitation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov but has not commented on the possibility of another meeting between Kim and Putin.
Choe and Lavrov held separate talks on Monday, with Russia expressing full support for North Korea’s efforts to protect its sovereignty and security interests and North Korea reaffirming its backing for Russia’s war against Ukraine, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency said Tuesday.
Yoon Min Ho, spokesperson for South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles affairs related to North Korea, said Seoul was closely monitoring the meetings but declined to assess whether Moscow and Pyongyang were discussing another summit between their leaders.
Russia’s Tass news agency said Putin during his meeting with Choe at the Kremlin on Sunday praised the countries’ bilateral relations and reiterated his “gratitude to the North Korean leadership and people” for supporting his military operations against Ukraine. Choe told Putin that Kim remains committed to the “comprehensive development” of relations with Russia, Tass said.
Kim traveled to Russia’s Far East for summits with Putin in 2019 and 2023. Putin invited Kim to visit Russia again during their summit in Pyongyang in June 2024, where the leaders signed a strategic partnership agreement pledging mutual aid if either country faces aggression.
Kim in recent years has made Russia the priority of his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and huge supplies of weapons to support Putin’s war in Ukraine, possibly in exchange for economic aid and technology transfers that some experts say are helping advance North Korea’s military capabilities.
Kim has also been seeking stronger ties with China, including hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping for a June summit in Pyongyang, as he embraces the idea of a “new Cold War” and projecting Pyongyang as part of a united front against Washington.
Choe’s visit to Moscow came shortly after North Korea and China exchanged high-level visits, with North Korean Cabinet premier, Pak Thae Song, Kim’s top economic official, meeting Xi in Beijing and Wang Huning, a member of the Chinese Communist Party’s powerful Politburo Standing Committee, visiting Kim in Pyongyang this month.
Kim has suspended all meaningful dialogue with the United States and South Korea since the collapse of his nuclear diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump in 2019. He has used Russia’s war on Ukraine as a distraction to accelerate the advancement of his nuclear weapons and missile program, while demanding that Washington abandon its calls for North Korea’s nuclear disarmament as a precondition for talks.
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, second left, attends talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, third right, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, fourth right, and Yuri Ushakov, Russian Presidential foreign policy adviser, right, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (Alexander Shcherbak, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (Alexander Shcherbak, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Dave Dombrowski believed in Don Mattingly so much he told the interim manager following the Philadelphia Phillies' elimination that he was the leading candidate to get the full-time job in 2027.
Still, the team's president of baseball operations wanted to poke around other options, just in case.
After checking in on other potential candidates — including getting rebuffed for a second time this year by former Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora — Dombrowski had some good news over the weekend for Mattingly: He was the manager.
“The first time the job was offered to anybody was Saturday, when I offered it to Don,” Dombrowski said Thursday.
Philadelphia gave Mattingly a two-year deal even after a late-season collapse nearly cost the team a playoff spot. The Phillies almost blew a four-game lead for a wild card in the final week of the regular season, then lost in three games to the Atlanta Braves in the NL Wild Card Series.
Mattingly did go 79-55 and earned the respect of a veteran team that largely pushed to have him return following his promotion from bench coach after Rob Thomson was fired in April
The Phillies’ core of Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola have made five straight playoff appearances and averaged 91 wins per year during that stretch.
They just haven't won the World Series.
There are plenty of changes ahead — Dombrowski touched on many during a 60-minute season-ending news conference — but the constant will be in the dugout.
“Last year really wasn't my team,” Mattingly said on a video call. “It was Thomps' team. I took over from that point and just kind of just drove the car from there.”
He added: “I think there are things that I want to do differently.”
Just how much can Dombrowski and Mattingly do to lead the Phillies — who had a $284.7 million opening day payroll — and their aging cast of stars to their first World Series title since 2008, especially with a work stoppage almost certain in December?
Trea Turner hit .242 with a .675 OPS with a league-worst 21 errors at shortstop in his fourth season with the Phillies. He went 1 for 10 in the playoffs and still has seven years left on his $300 million, 11-year deal, all but making him immovable in the trade market.
Dombrowski told Turner during a Tuesday meeting at Citizens Bank Park that he needs to show in spring training he can play at shortstop or else the veteran could potentially move to the outfield.
“He needs to fix some things with his swing,” Dombrowski said. “From a defensive perspective we were very clear. He knows he has to be better at shortstop. I told him it's really mandatory that it's like that.”
Turner took the blame after the Phillies were eliminated by the Braves and noted “I've got a lot of work to do” to regain the form he had in 2025, when he led the NL in hitting and made only eight errors.
“He's determined to show us he can play it,” Dombrowski said. “I said, you have to show it. You cannot play shortstop like you did defensively in ‘26 going to ’27.”
The Phillies fired hitting coach Kevin Long and infield coach Bobby Dickerson.
They hired former New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza as their new infield coach and third base coach. Mendoza was fired by the Mets in June. He had spent 15 seasons working for the New York Yankees, the last four as bench coach, before the Mets hired him to replace Buck Showalter after the 2023 season.
Left-handed reliever Tim Mayza and the Phillies agreed to a $2.75 million, one-year contract. He had a 3.48 ERA in 67 1/3 innings in his first season with the Phillies. He even started six games as an opener.
Several Phillies face uncertain futures
Third baseman Alec Bohm is eligible for free agency, as is second baseman Luis Arraez. Bohm ended the season on a hot streak and finished with 88 RBIs and a .698 OPS. He won Game 2 against Atlanta with a two-out homer in the 10th inning. Arraez, acquired at the trade deadline, missed the playoffs with a sprained left ankle.
The Phillies have prized infielder prospect Aidan Miller cleared to play and ready to compete for a spot on the roster after he missed most of 2026 with a back injury.
The 70-year-old Dombrowski enters the final year of his contract in 2027 but expects to stick around beyond that with the Phillies.
“I enjoy it, (I'm) healthy, have quality people around me,” Dombrowski said.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
FILE - Philadelphia Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski speaks during a news conference before a baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, April 28, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)
