Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his willingness to visit North Korea soon, state media said on Sunday. Putin thanked North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un for his invitation to visit Pyongyang, expressing his willingness to visit the internationally isolated country “at an early date,” state-controlled news agency KCNA said. The agency said that the North Korean government is “ready to greet the Korean people’s closest friend with the greatest sincerity.” Earlier in the week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow hoped the visit would go through and that Putin would travel t…