Russia-North Korea Agreement / In Washington they have “sleeplessness”

Red carpets, fun and lots of smiles in the last few days in Pyongyang. Seeking a foothold on the international stage, even in places Moscow once showed little interest, Vladimir Putin is making his first visit to North Korea since becoming head of the Kremlin 24 years ago. Putin’s talks with Kim Jong Un were cordial and highly productive, judging by the bilateral deals signed, most importantly in the military field.

As described by the North Korean news agency KCNA, the two leaders were able to share their “deep thoughts” during their talks and agreed to deepen their countries’ relations.

But at the same time some others, far away, looked suspiciously with obvious concern. They see the Moscow-Pyongyang rapprochement as a potential threat. In the “depth” there is the nuclear agenda, and the scenario of further strengthening of North Korea’s nuclear capabilities as a result of its closer cooperation with Russia is not excluded. This is a bad scenario for NATO and the US against the backdrop of intensifying geopolitical rivalries, and policy makers are already losing sleep.

Putin and Kim yesterday signed a bilateral agreement deepening Russia-North Korea military cooperation to include a mutual commitment to help each other in the event of an attack by either side, something akin to NATO’s infamous “Article 5” with Kim to be quick to call the new bilateral relationship an “alliance”.

Speaking at a press conference – something that happens very rarely – after his meeting with the Russian President, Kim spoke of signing a “comprehensive strategic partnership” with Russia. According to him, the pact, which he described as “strictly peaceful and defensive in nature”, will expand cooperation in the fields of politics, economy and defense. “The relations between our two countries have been raised to the new, higher level of an alliance,” the North Korean leader said, while expressing his “unconditional support” for “all policies of Russia.”

For his part, Putin noted, among other things, that the new pact provides for mutual aid in the event that one of the contracting parties is attacked. He hastened to add, according to Russian media reports, that Moscow is fighting the hegemonic, imperialist policy of the US and its allies. “We highly appreciate your consistent and unwavering support for Russian policy, including the Ukrainian direction,” Putin said, according to Russian state news agency RIA.

They worry and warn

The Russian President’s visit is being closely watched by Seoul and Washington, which have expressed concern over growing Moscow-Pyongyang military ties, Reuters comments.

The alliance is concerned about Russia’s support for North Korea’s missile and nuclear programs, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. Speaking yesterday at a joint press conference after his talks with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, he claimed that Russia’s war in Ukraine is supported by China, North Korea and Iran, countries that he added all want to see the Western Alliance to fail. The US accuses North Korea of ​​supplying “dozens of ballistic missiles and more than 11,000 containers of ammunition to Russia” for use on the Ukrainian fronts. “We are of course also concerned about the possible support that Russia provides to North Korea in terms of supporting its missile and nuclear programs,” Stoltenberg underlined.

According to him, the above scenario and China’s “support” for Russia’s war economy show how the security challenges in Europe are connected to Asia. So next month’s upcoming NATO summit in Washington will focus on further strengthening the Alliance’s partnerships with Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan.

Stoltenberg also said there should be “consequences” at some stage for China as well. “They cannot continue to have normal trade relations with countries in Europe and at the same time fuel the biggest war we have seen in Europe since the Second World War,” said the NATO secretary general.