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Mahesh

22/06/24 07:16 AM IST

The Russia-North Korea security pact

In News
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a “comprehensive strategic” partnership deal with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang recently.
History of relation between Russia & North Korea
  • Ties between Pyongyang and Moscow go back to the Soviet times.
  • The Soviet Union was the first nation to recognise North Korea, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), when it came into existence in 1948 under Kim Jong-un’s grandfather, Kim Il-sung.
  • Moscow supported DPRK in the 1950-53 Korean War while the U.S. supported the Republic of Korea (ROK), or South Korea. In a previously classified letter, which is now available in Wilson Centre’s digital archives, Kim Il-sung thanked Soviet leader Joseph Stalin for his “invaluable assistance” to DPRK’s “struggle for independence.”
  • Initially robust, relations between the countries declined as the rift between China and Russia grew after the Korean War ended.
  • The Soviet Union also established diplomatic relations with ROK, further isolating DPRK in the region.
  • Russia, which succeeded the Soviet Union, continued these diplomatic relations.
  • In 2012, Russia agreed to write off 90% of North Korea’s estimated $11 billion debt, although Russia supported UN Security Council sanctions against the North between 2016 and 2017 as Kim Jong-un accelerated the country’s nuclear and missile tests.
  • Kim-Jong un, in fact, attempted to improve his diplomatic ties with the U.S. and ROK in favour of his nuclear programme, while also working on relations with historical allies China and Russia. 
  • Strategic visits by North Korean leaders to Russia are also symbolic of the cooperation between the two countries.
  • Kim Jong-iI visited Russia in 2001, 2002, and in 2010; while his son and current leader Kim Jong-un visited Russia in 2019 and 2023. The two countries also share a land border.
New Agreement
  • The pact, officially called the “Treaty on the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation,” calls for immediate military and other assistance “using all available means” if either party is involved in a war, which it claims is in alignment with Article 51 of the U.N. charter (dealing with self-defence.)
  • The treaty also talks about building a “just and multipolar new world order,” and taking joint actions to strengthen defence capabilities.
  • Food, which is a chronic area of shortage for the DPRK, also finds mention in the treaty.
Significance
  • North Korea has, time and again, expressed its support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that started in February 2022, alluding to a crucial positive era in its relationship with Russia.
  • In July 2022, North Korea recognised Donetsk and Luhansk, in Ukraine’s Donbas region, as independent States after Russia and Syria did so. (Both these regions were annexed by Russia in September that year.)
  • DPRK has, in the past, also blamed the Russia-Ukraine crisis on U.S.-led West’s “hegemonic policy”.
  • The U.S. and South Korea believe DPRK has been supplying Russia artillery, missiles and other military equipment for use in Ukraine, as Russia continues to wage the largest land war in Europe since the end of the Second World War.
  • Russia, which has a vibrant military-industrial base, is reportedly sourcing weapons from North Korea and Iran, while the U.S. and European nations continue to assist Ukraine. 
  • Experts also believe North Korea is leveraging high-tech nuclear weapons and missile technologies from Russia in exchange for the arms.
  • Russia has also been a significant supplier of energy to North Korea— even more important after it suffered huge losses in revenue as Europe cut off trade with the country following its invasion of Ukraine. U.S., as a common adversary, also brings Russia and North Korea together as both countries attempt to create a shift in global power away from the West, with China on their side.
Source- The Hindu

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