North Korea Ratifies Mutual Defense Treaty With Russia (X image @singhadarbar)
North Korea ratified the landmark mutual defence treaty with Russia, said state media. The move came amidst the growing international concern over the thickening military cooperation between the two countries. The North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed the Treaty of Comprehensive Strategic Partnerships with Russia on Monday.
Russia ratified the treaty on November 6th, amidst months of increasing security cooperation with the North Korea, including the alleged transfer of weapons, and troops to Russia aiding the former’s war against Ukraine.
The agreement will come into effect when both the countries exchange the ratification instruments, as per Pyongyang’s official news agency, KCNA.
The treaty, which was first signed in North Korea on June 19, during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state visit, obliges both countries to provide immediate military assistance to each other using “all means” necessary, if either faces “aggression”.
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While agreeing to the accord with Putin, Kim marked the agreement as a step towards enhancing the bilateral ties between the two countries. He described it as something akin to an “alliance” between Moscow, and Pyongyang.
According to South Korean, US and Ukrainian intelligence, at least 11,000 North Korean soldiers have been sent to fight on the front lines against Ukrainian forces. Most of the North Korean troops have been deployed to Russia’s Kursk region, which has been under partial Ukrainian control since its surprise incursion into Russian territory in August.
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian President, on Monday said that Moscow has assembled a force of 50,000 soldiers, including North Korean soldiers in Kursk, as the country prepares to launch a major assault and reclaim territory lost to Ukrainian forces in the region bordering Ukraine.
Both Russia and Ukraine have yet to directly comment on the presence of North Korean soldiers in Moscow.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol warned that he may send arms to Ukraine If North Korean soldiers are not withdrawn from Russia.
“If North Korea dispatches special forces to the Ukraine war as part of Russia-North Korea cooperation, we will support Ukraine in stages and also review and implement measures necessary for security on the Korean Peninsula”, said Yoon, as quoted by media.
