Last week, Pyongyang was visited by delegations from China and Russia. This was the first time visitors were welcomed by North Korea since the pandemic. China sent Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress, and Russia sent Sergei Shoigu, Russian Defense Minister. The visits were just in time for the military parade that marks the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice agreement on Thursday. The two visitors accompanied the North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un as he watched the parade, according to North Korean state media (The Washington Post). Included in the parade were missiles and drones designed to carry nuclear weapons. These visits sent a clear message to the world that China and Russia will be standing by North Korea despite its buildup of nuclear weapons.
Russia and China have long been disrupting the UN Security Council’s efforts to punish North Korea for testing banned missiles, especially in recent years. More recently, Russia and North Korea vowed to bolster their “militant friendship and cooperation” to “cope with the everchanging regional and international security environment,” according to Pyongyang’s official report. North Korea is also one of the five countries that declined to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (The Washington Post). China has also been trying to improve its relationship with North Korea diplomatically.
The alliance between the three countries goes back to the end of WW2 when the Soviet Union introduced communism to China and the Northern parts of the Korean Peninsula. This previewed the Korean War, where North Korea fought alongside the Chinese with Soviet support against the Pro-US South Korea. Though the war itself ended with an armistice agreement signed on July 27, 1953, the two Koreas are still technically at war due to the lack of an official peace agreement.
The alliances between the three countries have been said to be “very much worrisome and frustrating” by Wi Sung-lac, former South Korean ambassador to Russia (The Washington Post). The United States, Japan, and South Korea have been increasing their security cooperation in response to the growing North Korean threat.
Russia and China have long been disrupting the UN Security Council’s efforts to punish North Korea for testing banned missiles, especially in recent years. More recently, Russia and North Korea vowed to bolster their “militant friendship and cooperation” to “cope with the everchanging regional and international security environment,” according to Pyongyang’s official report. North Korea is also one of the five countries that declined to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (The Washington Post). China has also been trying to improve its relationship with North Korea diplomatically.
The alliance between the three countries goes back to the end of WW2 when the Soviet Union introduced communism to China and the Northern parts of the Korean Peninsula. This previewed the Korean War, where North Korea fought alongside the Chinese with Soviet support against the Pro-US South Korea. Though the war itself ended with an armistice agreement signed on July 27, 1953, the two Koreas are still technically at war due to the lack of an official peace agreement.
The alliances between the three countries have been said to be “very much worrisome and frustrating” by Wi Sung-lac, former South Korean ambassador to Russia (The Washington Post). The United States, Japan, and South Korea have been increasing their security cooperation in response to the growing North Korean threat.
