North Korean leader Kim Jong Un informed Russia’s top diplomat that his country is prepared to “unconditionally support” all actions undertaken by Moscow to resolve the Ukraine conflict, state media reported on Sunday. This statement came during high-level strategic talks between the two nations. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is currently on a three-day visit to North Korea, a country that has provided troops and arms for Russia’s war with Ukraine and pledged further military assistance as Moscow seeks advancements in the conflict.
Kim met with Lavrov in the eastern coastal city of Wonsan, where the foreign ministers held their second strategic dialogue. They committed to enhanced cooperation under a partnership treaty signed last year, which includes a mutual defense pact.
North Korea’s state news agency KCNA reported that Kim Jong Un told Lavrov that the steps taken by the allies in response to rapidly evolving global geopolitics will significantly contribute to securing peace and security worldwide. “Kim Jong Un reaffirmed the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) is ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership as regards the tackling of the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis,” KCNA stated.
Lavrov earlier held discussions with his North Korean counterpart, Choe Son Hui, also in Wonsan. KCNA said they issued a joint statement pledging mutual support to safeguard the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of their respective countries. On Saturday, Russian media reported that during his meeting with Kim, Lavrov described the ties between the two nations as “an invincible fighting brotherhood” and extended gratitude for the troops deployed to Russia.
Relations between Russia and North Korea have dramatically deepened during the last two years of the war in Ukraine, which began in February 2022. Pyongyang has deployed more than 10,000 troops and arms to Russia to support Moscow’s military campaign. Kim’s government has also pledged to send approximately 6,000 military engineers and builders to assist with reconstruction efforts in Russia’s Kursk region.
