As a result of June 19 talks, Russia and North Korea have signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement. The agreement provides for mutual military assistance in the case of aggression against either country. Russia also denounced the “indefinite restrictions regime” of sanctions imposed on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) by the United Nations.
“Overused Western propaganda tropes can no longer hide their aggressive geopolitical intentions, including in Northwestern Asia,” Putin said in signing the agreement. The DPRK re-emphasizes its support for Russia in the war in Ukraine.
This development follows Putin’s first visit to North Korea in 24 years. Before Putin’s visit, he authored an article emphasizing the importance of Russia-North Korea relationships to the new “multipolar world order” that Russia is pursuing.
This new agreement marks a level of geopolitical closeness between the two countries unseen since the fall of the Soviet Union. This comprehensive strategic partnership is also one step higher than the strategic partnership Russia signed with South Korea in 2008.
The agreement also comes at a time when the United States is escalating military drills in the Korean peninsula.
