The Kremlin dictator avoids conversations about military cooperation with the DPRK.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was supposed to visit a Russian aircraft factory building fighter jets and later the country's Pacific Fleet, but his exact location remained unknown as South Korea expressed “deep concern and regret” on Sept. 14 that his visit had taken place so far. focused on expanding military cooperation.
The Associated Press writes about this.
Seoul's concerns
Washington has warned that a Sept. 13 summit between Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin could lead to an agreement to supply North Korea with ammunition for Moscow's war against Ukraine. There are widespread fears in Seoul that North Korea will receive advanced weapons technology, including military spy satellites, from Russia in exchange, exacerbating the threat posed by Kim's military nuclear program.
“We express our deep concern and regret that despite repeated warnings from the international community, North Korea and Russia discussed military cooperation, including satellite development, during their summit,” said Lim Soo-sook, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. business Affairs of South Korea.
Lim also noted that Kim's delegation to Russia includes several people who have been sanctioned by the UN Security Council for their involvement in illegal activities to develop North Korean weapons, including Korean People's Army Marshal Ri Pyong-chul and ruling party official Cho Chun-yong, who is in charge of policy in ammunition areas.
Military cooperation between the Russian Federation and the DPRK: a warning about the consequences
Lim said that Moscow must realize that its relations with Seoul will have a very negative impact if it continues military cooperation with North Korea.< /p>
South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yun-ho, who is responsible for relations with North Korea, warned that potential arms transfers between North Korea and Russia would prompt a stronger response from South Korea, the United States and Japan, which are strengthening their trilateral security cooperation to counter regional threats.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on September 13 that North Korea would face consequences if it supplied weapons to Russia.
“No country on the planet, no one should help Putin kill innocent Ukrainians,” Kirby said. If the countries decide to enter into an arms deal, the United States will evaluate the arrangement and handle it appropriately, he said.
Kirby noted that any agreement that improves North Korea's military capabilities, ” will certainly cause us significant concern.”
North Korean propaganda
The world is relying heavily on Russian and North Korean media for information about Kim's diplomacy in Russia, highlighting the convergence of interests between the nuclear-armed countries involved in escalation of tensions with the West.
A day after intense coverage of the Putin-Kim summit, Russian propaganda media remained silent on Kim Jong-un as of the afternoon of Thursday, September 14. North Korean state media report Kim's activities in Russia a day late and frame their reports to support government propaganda needs.
The official North Korean Central News Agency reported on September 14 that Kim invited Putin to visit North Korea at a “convenient time” and that Putin accepted the invitation “with pleasure and confirmed his will to continue unfailingly” the history of friendship between the peoples.
“Travel by yourself”
After the summit, Putin told Russian state propaganda television that Kim would independently visit two more cities in Russia's Far East, flying to Komsomolsk-on-Amur to visit an aircraft factory and then traveling to Vladivostok to tour Russia's Pacific Fleet, a university and others. .
“Fighting hegemons”: how Kim supports Putin
During a meeting on September 13 at the Russian cosmodrome in the Far East, Kim Jong-un promised “full and unconditional support” for Putin in what he called “a just fight against hegemonic forces to protect our sovereign rights, security and interests,” an apparent reference to the war in Ukraine.
“You are for me, and I am for you”: mutually beneficial relations between dictators
The decision to meet at the Vostochny cosmodrome indicates that Kim is looking for Russian help in the development of military reconnaissance satellites. He has previously said they are critical to increasing the threat of nuclear-capable missiles, and North Korea has repeatedly failed to put spy satellites into orbit.
Aviation plant in Komsomolsk -on-Amur could be another place that may hint at what Kim is seeking to get from Russia in exchange for helping fuel Putin's war against Ukraine.
“You can't fool me” : Will Putin want to share?
Some analysts doubt that Russia, always careful to guard its sensitive weapons technology, would be willing to share it with North Korea in exchange for what could end up being limited supplies of munitions that would move slowly through their small landline.< /p>
They say military cooperation between the countries could focus more on conventional weapons, such as Russia helping North Korea improve its aging air force, which still relies on fighter jets sent by the Soviet Union in the 1980s.
“Many interesting projects” and not a word about military cooperation
Putin told Russian propagandists that Russia and North Korea have “many interesting projects” in such areas , like transport and agriculture, and that Moscow is providing humanitarian assistance to its neighbor. But he sidestepped talk of military cooperation, saying only that Russia adheres to sanctions prohibiting it from buying weapons from North Korea.
The Sept. 13 meeting took place hours after North Korea launched two ballistic missiles towards the sea, continuing highly provocative tests from 2022 as Kim took advantage of the distraction caused by the war in Ukraine to speed up the development of his weapons.
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