BTN News: Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have signed a joint statement on the basis of an upgraded comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries contents of which include mutual defense, and ratification of the Russia-DPRK Friendship and Cooperation Treaty. Kim has described the pact as an “alliance,” and that language has alarmed the United States and other Western countries who fear it will build economic and military cooperation between Moscow and Beijing.
The culmination of long-awaited nuclear talks in Pyongyang signals Putin’s second summit with Kim in less than a year. Although the specific terms have remained under wraps, reports indicate the pact includes provisions for aid in the event of aggression against either party. Putin reiterated the treaty was a response to defensive measure, having confirmed North Korea’s right to defend itself and again leaving open the possibility of military-technical cooperation in the future.
The signing came in the aftermath of Kim Jong-un, who was taking questions from reporters after the agreement, enthusing about the treaty as the country’s “best ever” with Russia, described their partnership as “alliance-like. He was upbeat on prospects for deeper political, economic and military ties, the deal putting another layer in place for a new multipolar world order.
The visit and eventual agreement has come under intense scrutiny from world powers, including the US and South Korea. Officials in East Asia, for instance, have raised worries that deeper military cooperation between the two sanctioned countries could influence regional security issues including the situation on the Korean peninsula and Russia’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict.
The trip was condemned by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken who accused Russia of increasing its war making capacity during the conflict in Ukraine. He cited reports North Korea has provided Russia with munitions support to the war effort and accused Iran of furthering similar fewends.
That earlier summit included Russian aid in exchange for North Korea supplying military equipment, which is nothing ancients from this latest stated agreement. The two have signaled an expansion of their bilateral relationship, moving towards economic aid, energy collaboration and joint projects like North Korea’s space program.
Gift exchange by the leaders during Putin’s visit to Pyongyang / VCG PhotoHaving inserted pieces of personal rapport amidst the grand pomp and circumstance of the diplomatic meet, the leaders exchanged symbolic gifts. The public ceremony in the North Korean capital highlighted the symbolic significance of the trip, thousands following to witness the identification of the alliance.
The global geopolitical implications of such a pact are wide-reaching and have the possibility of altering and changing global dynamics and power structures. There is therefore significant asymmetry in Russian and North Korean interests in the relationship, but the direct exchange of energy and security cooperation suggest a deeper geopolitical influence Russia beginning to emerge in Northeast Asia, as Pyongyang secures major pieces in the security chess-board.
In the end, there was something that sounded like a geo-politico-maneuver of some kind of significance: the Russia-DPRK pact. The ultimate direction of geopolitics in broader east Asia and world-wide in reaction to this development remains uncertain but we have now an added factor in the mix.
