Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed on Tuesday the “strong support” provided by North Korea to the Russian military operation in Ukraine, a few hours before his arrival in Pyongyang for an exceptional visit, preceded by incidents on the border inter-Korean.
Mr. Putin is due to make a state visit to North Korea on Tuesday and Wednesday, after which a strategic partnership agreement could be signed between these two countries whose alliance the West perceives as a threat.
Huge banners “warmly welcome President Putin” and depicting his smiling face were hung from lampposts in Pyongyang, alongside Russian flags, images broadcast by Russian state media showed.
Moscow and Pyongyang have been allies since the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), but have grown closer since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“Russia supported (North Korea) and its heroic people in their struggle to defend their right to choose the path of independence, originality and development for themselves in the confrontation with the cunning enemy , dangerous and aggressive […] and it will unwaveringly support them in the future,” Mr. Putin wrote in an article published by the official North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun and the KCNA agency.
He also said that Pyongyang “firmly supports” the Russian military offensive in Ukraine and thanked it.
Americans and Europeans have been worried for months about the accelerated rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang, accusing the North Koreans of delivering munitions to Russia for its assault on Ukraine in exchange for technological, diplomatic and food assistance.
The Kremlin released a document on Tuesday confirming that Russia was considering signing a “strategic partnership” treaty with North Korea.
This visit “shows the extent to which President Putin and Moscow are now dependent on authoritarian countries around the world. Their closest friends and biggest supporters of the Russian war effort — the war of aggression — are North Korea, Iran and China,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg commented on Monday. from Washington, stressing that Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is now “violating the sanctions” imposed on North Korea.
Strategic partnership
“What concerns us is the deepening of the relationship between these two countries, not only because of the impact it will have on the Ukrainian people, because we know that North Korean ballistic missiles are still used to strike Ukrainian targets, but also because there could be some reciprocity that could affect the security of the Korean peninsula,” said White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. .
Vladimir Putin’s diplomatic adviser, Yuri Ushakov, told Russian media that “important, very significant documents” will be signed, referring to “the possible conclusion of a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged the international community to counter the “virile friendship” between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un by increasing arms deliveries to kyiv.
” Brothers in arms “
The trip to North Korea comes nine months after Mr. Putin hosted Kim Jong-un in the Russian Far East, a visit during which the two men praised each other but did not conclude, officially at least, okay.
According to the West, Pyongyang has drawn on its vast stocks of munitions to massively supply Russia, and the Pentagon last week accused Moscow of using North Korean ballistic missiles in Ukraine.
In exchange, Washington and Seoul say, Russia provided North Korea with expertise for its satellite program and sent aid to deal with the country’s food shortages.
In March, Russia used its veto at the UN Security Council to end monitoring of international sanctions violations targeting North Korea, a major gift to Pyongyang.
Hours before Mr. Putin’s scheduled arrival in Pyongyang, incidents broke out on the inter-Korean border. According to the South Korean general staff, “several dozen North Korean soldiers crossed the military demarcation line”, before retreating under warning fire from the South.
This is the second such incursion in less than two weeks.
Furthermore, according to the South Korean general staff, several North Korean soldiers were injured by the explosion of mines they were laying along the border.
Watch carefully
South Korea said Thursday it was “closely monitoring preparations” for Vladimir Putin’s visit.
Seoul has provided significant military aid to Ukraine, where South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited last month, and is taking part in Western sanctions against Moscow.
This is only the second visit to North Korea by the Russian leader, who last visited nearly a quarter of a century ago, shortly after he came to power, to meet with the father of Kim Jong-un, Kim Jong Il.