Behind the smiles, balloons, and red-carpet pageantry of President Vladimir Putin’s recent visit to North Korea, a strong signal emerged: In the escalating conflict with the US and its allies over Ukraine, the Russian leader is prepared to challenge Western interests like never before.
New Military Pact
The pact signed between Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un includes mutual military assistance if either nation is attacked. For the first time, Putin also announced that Russia could supply weapons to North Korea, a move that could destabilize the Korean Peninsula and have far-reaching consequences. Putin framed these potential arms shipments as a response to NATO allies providing Ukraine with longer-range weapons to attack Russia, declaring that Moscow is ready to go to any lengths to achieve its goals in Ukraine.
Concerns in Washington and Seoul
Putin’s moves have heightened concerns in Washington and Seoul. They fear an alliance where North Korea provides Russia with much-needed munitions for its war in Ukraine in exchange for economic assistance and technology transfers that could enhance Kim’s nuclear weapons and missile program. The new agreement represents the strongest link between Moscow and Pyongyang since the end of the Cold War. While Kim described the pact as raising bilateral relations to the level of an alliance, Putin compared it to a 1961 treaty between the Soviet Union and North Korea.
International Reactions
In response to the pact, South Korea announced it would consider sending arms to Ukraine, marking a significant policy shift from its previous stance of only providing humanitarian assistance. Putin warned South Korea against supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine, suggesting it would be a significant mistake. He implied that Russia would take corresponding actions that would not please South Korea’s current leadership.
Weapons for North Korea
Last month, Putin hinted that Russia could provide long-range weapons to other nations to target Western interests, responding to NATO allies arming Ukraine. On Thursday, he explicitly threatened to supply weapons to North Korea. Sue Mi Terry, a senior fellow for Korea studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, warned that Russia might share weapons technologies with Pyongyang, enhancing its ballistic missile capabilities. She noted there is already evidence of Russian assistance in North Korea’s successful satellite launch in November.
Potential UN Sanctions Violations
While raising the possibility of supplying arms to North Korea, Putin indicated that Russia might try to ease restrictions at the UN, maintaining a degree of deniability to avoid accusations of breaching sanctions. Both Russia and North Korea have denied US and ally assertions that Pyongyang has provided Moscow with ballistic missiles and millions of artillery shells for use in Ukraine.
Confrontation with the West
By linking potential arms shipments to North Korea with Western actions in Ukraine, Putin warned Kyiv’s allies to back off, or face a new round of confrontation. He argued that the West is escalating the situation, aiming to strategically defeat Russia on the battlefield. Putin’s stance suggests he is willing to pursue his goals in Ukraine to the very end.
Caution with China
Putin’s visit to North Korea presents a new challenge to Pyongyang’s main ally, China, potentially allowing Kim to reduce his reliance on Beijing. China has not commented on the new pact, but experts suggest Beijing will be displeased with losing influence over its neighbor. Since invading Ukraine, Russia has increasingly depended on China for its energy exports and high-tech technologies. While strengthening ties with Pyongyang, the Kremlin will likely tread carefully to avoid angering Beijing.
Future of Russia-North Korea Relations
The future of the Russia-North Korea relationship will likely depend on China’s response. Despite the expected increase in military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, China remains North Korea’s largest economic partner. Edward Howell of Chatham House noted that China will closely watch developments, especially Kim Jong Un’s assertion that Russia is North Korea’s “most honest friend.”
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by The Courtroom staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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