By Hyunsu Yim and Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) -A&nbsp;Russian&nbsp;delegation led by natural&nbsp;resources&nbsp;minister&nbsp;Alexander Kozlov is visiting Pyongyang,&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korean state media said on Wednesday, as the politically isolated state announced&nbsp;new&nbsp;progress in its banned ballistic&nbsp;missile&nbsp;programme.
Kozlov arrived on Tuesday, as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with U.N. member states enforcing the&nbsp;Korean War armistice in Seoul and said they were concerned that China and Russia are helping&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;expand its military capabilities by enabling Pyongyang to evade U.N. sanctions.
Russia and&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;were conducting talks on the economy, science and technology, KCNA state media reported, without elaborating.
Kozlov told a reception that Russia wants to develop "substantial cooperation" with&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;based on the agreements made by&nbsp;Russian&nbsp;President Vladimir Putin and&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korean leader Kim Jong Un when they met in September in Russia's far east, KCNA reported.
He also cited&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea's "full support" for Russia over regional and international issues, the report said.
A delegation led by the country's culture&nbsp;minister&nbsp;left for St. Petersburg on Tuesday to attend a cultural event, KCNA said in another article.
North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;is in its final stages of preparation for the launch of a spy satellite, and appears to have received technical assistance from Russia, South&nbsp;Korea's intelligence agency said this month.
NEW&nbsp;MISSILE&nbsp;ENGINES
North&nbsp;Korean state media also reported on Wednesday that the country had successfully conducted static tests of "new-type high-thrust solid-fuel engines" for intermediate-range ballistic&nbsp;missiles (IRBMs).
"The test provided a sure guarantee for reliably accelerating the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of the&nbsp;new-type IRBM system," KCNA said.
The announcement came on the same day South&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;and the U.S. held a joint aerial exercise involving a U.S. B-52 strategic bomber alongside fighter jets as a show of force aimed at Pyongyang, South&nbsp;Korea's defence ministry said.
North&nbsp;Korea's General&nbsp;Missile&nbsp;Bureau attached great significance to the&nbsp;new&nbsp;IRBM, saying the recent tests are essential for enhancing the strategic offensive capabilities of the military in light of "the grave and unstable security environment facing the country" and the "vicious" collusion of its enemies, KCNA added.
Military analysts say solid-fuel&nbsp;missiles are easier and safer to operate, and require less logistical support, making them harder to detect and more survivable than liquid-fuel weapons.
This year&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;tested its first solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic&nbsp;missile&nbsp;(ICBM) - the largest category of ballistic&nbsp;missile&nbsp;- and also uses the technology in a range of smaller weapons.
North&nbsp;Korea's&nbsp;missile&nbsp;programme, as well as its nuclear weapons, have been banned by U.N. Security Council resolutions, which imposed sanctions on the country.
Washington has accused&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;of supplying military equipment to Russia for use in its war with Ukraine, and Moscow of providing technical military support to help&nbsp;North&nbsp;Korea.
North&nbsp;Korea&nbsp;and Russia have denied any arms deals, though their leaders pledged closer military cooperation at their September summit.
(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim and Josh Smith; Editing by Grant McCool and Gerry Doyle)

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Russian resources minister visits North Korea amid new missile development