NATO leaders condemned North Korea's weapons exports to Russia, voicing “great concern” over the two countries’ deepening partnership.
“We strongly condemn the DPRK’s exports of artillery shells and ballistic missiles, which are in violation of numerous United Nations Security Council resolutions, and note with great concern the deepening ties between the DPRK and Russia,” the leaders said in a declaration at their summit in Washington on Wednesday.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or DPRK, is North Korea’s official name.
The leaders added that both North Korea and Iran were “fuelling Russia’s war of aggression” against Ukraine by providing direct military support, which “seriously impacts” Euro-Atlantic security and undermines the global non-proliferation regime.
“Any transfer of ballistic missiles and related technology by Iran to Russia would represent a substantial escalation,” they said.
The NATO summit came weeks after Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed under a new partnership treaty to offer each other military assistance "without delay" if either were attacked.
The United States says North Korea has supplied Russia with large amounts of weapons for its war in Ukraine, in particular artillery rounds and ballistic missiles, although both Russia and North Korea deny that.
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Separately, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who were invited to the NATO summit as leaders of the four Indo-Pacific partner nations alongside Australia and New Zealand, pledged to bolster security cooperation amid the deepening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia.
“The recent moves by Russia and North Korea are causing serious concern not only in East Asia but also for global security,” Yoon said at the start of the talks with Kishida.
“I hope that South Korea and Japan will cooperate closely with NATO member countries and reaffirm that the security of the North Atlantic and Northeast Asia cannot be separated,” he said.
Yoon added Russia’s close alignment with North Korea highlighted the importance of trilateral security cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan, as outlined at their Camp David summit in August 2023
Kishida also said the security of the two regions was closely linked.
“The security of the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific is inseparable. This summit provides an opportunity to deepen cooperation between NATO and our Indo-Pacific partners,” Kishida added.
Edited by Mike Firn.