Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed North Korea’s “firm support” for his military operation in Ukraine on Tuesday, a few hours before his arrival in Pyongyang to an exceptional visitpreceded by incidents on the inter-Korean border.
Putin will hold this Tuesday a two-day state visit to North Korea during which the signing of a strategic partnership agreement is expected between both countries, whose alliance is perceived as a threat by the West.
Before you leave, Putin gave its approval to the draft of a strategic partnership treaty which he plans to sign with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong-un.
Moscow and Pyongyang have been allies since the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), but They have strengthened ties since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
The New York Times published a story this Tuesday under the title “In need of ammunition, Putin visits North Korea.”
The newspaper reminds that Putin last visited North Korea in 2000., when he became the first Russian or Soviet leader to visit the nation. This week’s trip highlights North Korea’s growing strategic importance to Putin, especially its ability to supply conventional weapons. much needed for the war in Ukraine.
Kim met Putin in Russia’s Far East in September, ushering in a new era of relations between the two countries.
For Kim, It was a rare moment in which his country, a pariah in the West, was sought as an ally. For Russia, it is a strengthening of ties with a country that is providing it with much-needed ammunition for its war in Ukraine.
“Russia has supported (North Korea) and its heroic people in their struggle to defend their right to choose for themselves the path of independence, originality and development in the confrontation with the cunning, dangerous and aggressive enemy (. ..) and will constantly support him in the future,” Putin wrote in a column published in the North Korean official newspaper Rodong Sinmun and the KCNA news agency.
He also stated that Pyongyang “strongly supports” Russian offensive in Ukraine and thanked him for that.
Western powers They have been accusing the North Koreans of delivering ammunition to Russia for months for their war in Ukraine, in exchange for technological, diplomatic and food.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that Putin’s visit shows how much Russia needs the support of authoritarian leaders to carry out its offensive in Ukraine.
Strategic partnership
“What worries us is the deepening of the relationship between these two countries,” declared White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.
Putin’s diplomatic advisor, Yuri Ushakov, presented the trip as an important event for both countries, hit by western sanctionsand mentioned the “possible” signing of the “global strategic cooperation agreement.”
The Russian leader will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the Minister of Defense, Andrei Belousov.
Putin, who He is the subject of an international arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court, He has reduced his trips abroad, but has made some trips to visit key allies, such as China.
Beijing on Tuesday urged NATO to “stop blaming” the Ukraine war after Stoltenberg accused the Asian giant of aggravating the conflict with its support for Russia.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged the international community to counter the “friendship” between Putin and Kim increasing arms shipments to kyiv.
“The best way to respond is to continue strengthening the diplomatic coalition for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and deliver more… ammunition to Ukraine,” Kuleba told AFP.
“Brothers in arms”
Putin’s visit takes place nine months after he received Kim in the Russian Far East, where both leaders showered each other with praise, but did not close – at least officially – any agreement.
In March, Russia used its veto power in the UN Security Council to end the system of monitoring sanctions imposed on North Korea, which were imposed mainly over Pyongyang’s nuclear program.
A few hours before Putin’s arrival in Pyongyang, Dozens of North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the fortified border with South Korea, but they retreated quickly in the face of warning shots, an act that Seoul’s military commanders believe was accidental.
This It is the second incident of this type in less than two weeks.
Follow closely
South Korea said it was “closely monitoring preparations” for Putin’s visit.
Seoul provided significant military aid to Ukrainea country that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited last month, and participates in the Western sanctions taken against Moscow.
Putin presents his offensive in Ukraine as a battle against American hegemony on the international scene.
This is the second visit to North Korea by the Russian leader, who last went almost a quarter of a century ago, shortly after coming to power, to meet with the father of Kim Jong UnKim Jong Il.
With information from AFP, EFE and The New York Times
