Russian Defence Minister meets North Korean President Un and his North Korean Counterpart to Expand Military Cooperation

By R Anil Kumar

• In recent months, North Korea has prioritised relations with Russia, aiming to break out of isolation and strengthen its global standing while embracing the idea of a “New Cold War”

• The United States and its allies have said North Korea has sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in recent weeks and that some of those troops were engaging in combat

Pyongyang, North Korea, November 30. President Kim Yong-un vowed North Korea will “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine as he met Russia’s defence chief, state media reported on Saturday, November 30.

A Russia military delegation led by Defence Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday, November 29, amid growing international concern about the two countries’ expanding cooperation after North Korea sent thousands of troops to Russia last month.

The official Korean Central News Agency said that Kim and Belousov reached “a satisfactory consensus” on boosting strategic partnership and defending each country’s sovereignty, security interests and international justice in the face of the rapidly-changing international security environments in a Friday, November 29, meeting.

Kim said that North Korea “will invariably support the policy of the Russian Federation to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity from the imperialists’ moves for hegemony,” Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), said.

North Korea has supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, calling it a defensive response to what both Moscow and Pyongyang call NATO’s “reckless” eastward advance and U.S.-led moves to stamp out Russia’s position as a powerful state.

Kim slammed a US. decision earlier in November to let Ukraine strike targets inside Russia with US-supplied longer-range missiles as a direct intervention in the conflict. He called recent Russian strikes on Ukraine “a timely and effective measure” demonstrate Russia’s resolve, KCNA said.

According to US, Ukrainian and South Korean assessments, North Korea has sent more than 10,000 troops to Russia and some of them have already begun engaging in combat on the frontlines. US, South Korean and others say North Korea has also shipped artillery systems, missiles and other conventional weapons to replenish Russia’s exhausted weapons inventory.

Both North Korea and Russia haven’t formally confirmed the North Korean troops’ movements, and have steadfastly denied reports of weapons shipments.

South Korea, the US and their partners are concerned that Russia could give North Korea advanced weapons technology in return, including help to build more powerful nuclear missiles.

Last week, South Korean national security adviser Shin Wonsik told a local SBS TV program that Seoul assessed that Russia has provided air defence missile systems to North Korea.

He said Russia also appeared to have given economic assistance to North Korea and various military technologies, including those needed for the North’s efforts to build a reliable space-based surveillance system.

Belousov said the two countries’ strategic partnership was crucial to defend their sovereignty from aggression and the arbitrary actions of imperialists, KCNA said.

Meanwhile, Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov met with his North Korean counterpart No Kwang Cho for talks in Pyongyang on Friday November 29, in what Belousov said was an effort to expand military cooperation between the two countries.

The Russian defence chief also said that a strategic partnership agreement signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in June is aimed at “stabilising” Northeast Asia.

“The agreement aims to reduce the risk of war, including nuclear weapons, and to make a positive contribution to maintaining the balance of power in the region,” Belousov said.

During his remarks, North Korea’s No Kwang Cho said that Pyongyang would stand “on the common front with Russian comrades to safeguard international peace and security.”

Belousov’s visit came just days after South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol met with a Ukrainian delegation led by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov in the capital, Seoul.

Yoon called for the two countries to formulate countermeasures against North Korea’s reported deployment of thousands of troops to Russia to support its war effort in Ukraine.

The United States and its allies have said North Korea has sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia in recent weeks and that some of those troops were engaging in combat.

In recent months, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has prioritised relations with Russia as he tries to break out of isolation and strengthen his international footing, embracing the idea of a “New Cold War.”

— (With inputs from Russian Defense Ministry Press Service& Korean Central News Service).