The tension continues to grow peninsula Korean. Following the visit of Vladimir Putin in North Korea, and to the strategic pact signed between the Russian president and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un, Seoul issued a clear warning to Moscow. The South Korean government has in fact declared that the cooperation between the Kremlin and the North he crossed almost all the red lines placed by South Korea, except for supply to Pyongyang”of high precision weapons“Russians. The United States Meanwhile, they continue to claim that Kim sent Putin bullets, missiles and ammunition that the Russian Federation would use to continue its military operation in Ukraine. Washington’s great fear is that, sooner or later, the exact opposite could also happen: that is, that Kim could receive war jokers from his new friend. Let us remember that North Korea and South Korea are still technically at war with each other, given that no peace treaty has been signed between the two countries and that the Korean War (1950-1953) was only frozen by an armistice. What is happening between the two Koreas?
Seoul’s warning: what happens between the two Koreas
South Korea’s National Security Advisor, Chang Ho Jinwas emblematic: “Russia’s recent actions have progressively reached an (extreme) red line, and for this reason we have issued a warning“. “If Russia provided high-precision weapons to North Korea, what other course would we be left with?“, Chang added, specifically quoting Putin’s words.
Recently, in fact, the Russian president declared that Moscow does not exclude the possibility of supplying precision weapons to North Korea, in response to the supply of weapons systems of the same type to Ukraine by the United States and the European Union. “Managing South Korea-Russia relations is not something we can do alone. Russia must make mutual efforts“, cautioned Chang. “I reiterate that if Russia really wants to restore relations after the war (in Ukraine), it would do well to carefully consider its actions“, concluded the senior official from Seoul.
The Russian variable
For a few weeks the Korean dossier he is shaken by Vladimir Putin. The Russian president, consolidating his friendship with Kim, has essentially decided to increase his pressure on the US and their local partners. The move was not at all liked by Seoul, which asked Moscow to “act responsibly“and to interrupt”immediately“any form of military cooperation with Pyongyang.
The message in question was delivered on Friday 21 June by the Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Hong Kyun to the Russian ambassador in Seoul, Georgy Zinovievsummoned after Putin signed an agreement on Wednesday 19 June defense treaty with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. A treaty which, among other things, commits both countries to intervene to help their ally in the event of an attack.
There South KoreaKim clarified, “will respond resolutely to any action that threatens our security“, particularly in a situation in which Pyongyang appears ready to use its nuclear weapons. According to the South Korean deputy minister, Russia has violated United Nations Security Council resolutions by helping North Korea, directly or indirectly, to strengthen the own military arsenal. This, he added, “will inevitably have a negative impact” on bilateral relations.
Zinoviev, for his part, defined “unacceptable“every attempt”to threaten or blackmail” Russia, highlighting how military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang is not directed against any third country. Tension, meanwhile, continues to grow.
