Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko announced the conditions regarding North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to Russia, saying it would happen “when all necessary conditions align.” He also emphasized that the meeting and cooperation agreement between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim held this month was not targeted at South Korea.
On the 25th (local time), Rudenko told Russian news agency Sputnik in an interview, “I believe that such a visit will take place as soon as the necessary conditions are met and the basis for the documents that need to be signed at the visit stage is advanced.” He did not mention a specific timing related to this.
Putin announced that he had signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement with North Korea on the 19th, after concluding a summit with Kim in Pyongyang. This agreement includes a clause that provides mutual support if one party is invaded. Putin, who visited Pyongyang for the first time in 24 years, told Kim, “I look forward to your return visit to Moscow.” If the two leaders meet again in Moscow, it will be their fourth meeting. Putin invited Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un’s father, to visit Moscow during his visit to North Korea in 2000 with Kim Jong Il visiting Moscow about a year later.
According to the North Korean Workers’ Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun on the 25th, Putin mentioned Kim’s return visit in a thank-you message after visiting North Korea. Putin told Kim, “I hope you keep in mind that you are always a welcome guest on Russian soil.”
While Putin emphasized a return visit to Moscow, he kept a distance regarding the actual intensity of cooperation with North Korea. At the summit on the 19th, Kim claimed that the two countries had “reached an alliance,” but Putin did not mention the word “alliance.” The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement that North Korea disclosed alone on the 20th includes the condition for support when the two countries are invaded by force, stating that it will be provided under “UN Charter Article 51” and North Korean and Russian law.
In Hanoi, Vietnam on the 20th, Putin emphasized the agreement with North Korea, “There is nothing new,” adding “The treaty’s military aid applies only when there is an invasion or military attack, so there is no need for South Korea to worry.” He argued, “As far as I know, South Korea has no plans to invade North Korea, so they do not have to fear our cooperation in this area.”
Rudenko also said through Sputnik that this agreement is “a kind of warning to countries that expect or plan to solve the entire issue of the Korean Peninsula and the related region militarily.” He reiterated, “This is not aimed at South Korea or a third country,” adding, “It is not to worsen the already difficult situation in Northeast Asia.”
Rudenko said that tensions in Northeast Asia are rising due to the United States’ policy of increasing military power. He said, “The main goal of all these policies is not only to isolate North Korea but also China and Russia,” and criticized, “Americans are using the current tension to deploy bases and missile systems on allied territories.”
