North Korea Continues Friendly Moves Toward Russia and China

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] North Korea has declared its intention to strengthen friendship and cooperation with Russia on the 21st anniversary of the adoption of the 'North Korea-Russia Moscow Declaration.' This move is analyzed as aligning closely with China and Russia, who are in conflict with the United States and have drawn a line against recent North Korea-US and inter-Korean dialogues.

On the 4th, the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in an article titled "A historic declaration demonstrating the firmness of North Korea-Russia friendship" that it will "continuously develop the bilateral friendly relations with Russia to new and higher levels." It also emphasized that "we will continue to closely cooperate in the struggle to guarantee world peace and security and to establish a just and fair international order."

North Korea has recently claimed that Russia's invasion of Ukraine is a response to Western hegemonic policies and has actively supported Russia's position by recognizing the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), separatist groups within Ukraine that are pro-Russian.

Regarding the Moscow Declaration agreed upon by National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-il and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs evaluated it as "a joint document of great significance that laid a powerful driving force for the development of North Korea-Russia relations in the 21st century."

The Moscow Declaration was a document announced after Chairman Kim Jong-il visited Russia in August 2001 and held talks with President Putin. It consists of eight articles addressing issues such as the independent and peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula and the connection of North Korea-Russia railways.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.