Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have signed an agreement that includes a clause requiring the two countries to provide each other with assistance if either side is attacked.
Including mutual defense provisions in the comprehensive strategic partnership that Kim Jong Un calls an “alliance” would increase Western alarm over growing economic and military ties between North Korea and Russia. The deal was finalized on Wednesday after hours of talks in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. This is Putin’s second summit with Kim Jong Un in nine months.
Russian state news agency TASS quoted Putin as saying: “The comprehensive partnership agreement signed today, among other things, stipulates mutual assistance in the event of aggression by one of the parties to the agreement.” He visited North Korea again after 24 years.
It’s unclear what form that support might take, and no details of the agreement have been released. Putin later described the agreement as “defensive”, citing North Korea’s right to defend itself, Tass news agency reported. He added that Russia would not rule out developing military-technical cooperation with North Korea.
Kim Jong-un delivered a speech after the signing ceremony, calling the agreement “the most powerful treaty ever signed” between the two countries, elevating the relationship between the two countries to a “higher level of alliance.” He said the agreement would bring closer political, economic and military cooperation, and praised the agreement for “accelerating the establishment of a new multipolar world.”
Putin’s visit is being closely watched by the United States and South Korea amid concerns that growing military cooperation between the isolated, sanctioned nations could fuel the Kremlin’s war effort in Ukraine and heighten tensions on the Korean peninsula.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Washington that Putin’s visit highlighted Russia’s “desperate attempts to develop and strengthen relations with countries that can provide it with the resources it needs to continue its aggressive war against Ukraine”.
Blinken added: “North Korea is supplying Russia with large quantities of ammunition … and other weapons for use in Ukraine. Iran has been supplying weapons, including drones, that are being used against civilians and civilian infrastructure.
During a summit with Putin in Vladivostok last September, Kim is believed to have agreed to provide missiles and other weapons to Russian troops in Ukraine. In return, Russia will provide food and energy aid and help North Korea’s space program.
Kim Jong Un greeted Putin at Pyongyang International Airport in the early hours of Wednesday morning before they drove through the capital’s brightly lit streets, past buildings decorated with Russian flags and portraits of the Russian leader.
Hours later, they attended a welcome ceremony in Kim Il Sung Square, saluted a guard of honor, walked a red carpet and met key members of Kim Jong Un’s inner circle, including Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui and Kim Jong Un’s influencers. Kim Yo Jung.
The square was packed with tens of thousands of spectators, including children holding balloons and people wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the red, white and blue colors of the Russian and North Korean flags.
At the start of the talks, Putin thanked Kim for his support for the war in Ukraine, saying it was part of a broader “struggle against the imperialist and hegemonic policies of the United States and its satellite states against the Russian Federation.”
The two leaders exchanged gifts: a luxurious Russian-made Aurus limousine and tea sets for Kim, as well as items for Putin that Kremlin aides said were related to Putin’s image, “including a bust.” ”.
Putin then drove Kim through Pyongyang in an Aurus limousine.
