Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a pact with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un agreeing to provide all available military assistance to each other if either faced armed aggression.
According to the full text of a landmark pact released on Thursday by Pyongyang after a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin, the 'Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership' effectively revives a defunct mutual defence agreement from the 1960s.
"If either side faces an armed invasion and is in a state of war, the other side will immediately use all available means to provide military and other assistance in accordance with Article 51 of the U.N. Charter and the laws of each country," Article 4 of the agreement says.
"The agreement said neither side would sign any treaty with a third country that infringes on the interests of the other and will not allow its territory to be used by any country to harm the other's security and sovereignty," KCNA said. The two countries will take joint actions aimed at
"strengthening defence capabilities to prevent war and ensure regional and international peace and security", it said.
Kim, speaking after the signing ceremony, called the deal the “strongest ever treaty” signed between the two countries, elevating their relationship to the “higher level of an alliance”. The pact would lead to closer political, economic and military cooperation, he said, hailing the agreement as “accelerating the creation of a new multipolar world”.
According to Russian state news agency TASS, the comprehensive partnership agreement includes, among other things, the provision of mutual assistance in the event of aggression against one of the parties to this agreement.
The pact comes amid deepening concern over North Korean aid in the Ukraine war. While Washington and Seoul have been increasingly alarmed by military cooperation between Russia and the North, Ukraine has mentioned how they have found North Korean missile debris inside their country despite both countries denying arms trade.
Reactions
The pact has raised concerns among South Korea and Japan. Seoul said it regretted that the agreement included a pledge of "military technology cooperation", which would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea's weapons programs.
The White House did not immediately comment on the reported content of the agreement. Japan expressed "grave concerns" about Putin's vow not to rule out cooperation with Pyongyang on military technology.
