 "From Pyongyang to Putin: Nuclear diplomacy shifts amid Ukraine standoff")
Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a direct warning to the United States (US) and its allies, threatening to arm North Korea if the US persists in supplying Kyiv with sophisticated weaponry that has targeted Russian territory. This escalation raises the stakes in the conflict, highlighting intense geopolitical tensions surrounding Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters while traveling in Vietnam late on Thursday, Putin reiterated a similar, albeit less explicit, threat made earlier in Pyongyang. Putin reaffirmed a Cold War-era mutual defense agreement with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, obligating both nations to provide military support to each other in case of attack.
Justifying his potential arming of Pyongyang, which would contravene United Nations sanctions, Putin cited recent decisions by the US and its allies permitting Ukrainian strikes on Russian soil using supplied weaponry. While the White House authorised these actions last month, it maintained restrictions on longer-range attacks within Russia using US arms.
“Those who provide these weapons believe they are not at war with us,” Putin said, adding, “But, as I’ve said before, including in Pyongyang, we reserve the right to supply weapons to other regions of the world.”
He also questioned the future destinations of these weapons, suggesting North Korea could subsequently distribute Russian arms to other hostile actors globally, antagonistic towards the US and its allies.
While Putin refrained from specifying the types of weapons he might provide to North Korea, Kim is reportedly advancing his nuclear warheads, missiles, submarines, and satellites to areas where Russia holds some of the world’s most advanced and dangerous technologies.
More From This Section
Ukraine war influences Russia-North Korea relations
The Russian leader’s visit to Pyongyang underscores Ukraine’s central role in his foreign policy, eclipsing longstanding Kremlin priorities. Allegations from the US and South Korea that North Korea shipped numerous ballistic missiles and over 11,000 munitions containers to Russia for use in the Ukrainian war have fuelled concerns. Both Russia and North Korea have denied these allegations, which would violate UN sanctions.
Previously, Russia had supported UN efforts to curb Kim’s nuclear and missile programmes through multiple Security Council resolutions. These measures were imposed as North Korea conducted six nuclear tests and developed intercontinental ballistic missiles.
However, Putin has now shifted course dramatically, advocating for the removal of sanctions he once endorsed. This change reflects his goal to increase the cost for the US of supporting Ukraine, and Russia's necessity for North Korea’s substantial stockpiles of conventional weapons and ammunition for use on the battlefield.
“Western nations supply weapons to Ukraine, claiming no control over their use," Putin said. "We could equally deliver arms to others and disavow control. Let them think about that," he added.
Renewed defense pact fuels regional tensions
Renewing a Cold War-era mutual defense pact with North Korea and suggesting potential arms supplies to Kim’s regime, Putin has sparked concerns in South Korea and Japan, where tens of thousands of US troops are stationed.
South Korean officials responded, suggesting they might provide lethal aid to Ukraine in response, prompting Putin to caution against such a move in his Thursday remarks before leaving the region.
“This would be a grave mistake,” Putin warned. “I hope this does not occur. If it does, we will take corresponding measures, unlikely to please South Korea’s current leadership,” he said.
He further reassured South Korea that the mutual defense pact was only invoked in response to aggression against North Korea, noting that as far as he knew, South Korea had no intention of carrying out such an attack.
Putin, who has criticised the “suffocating effect of sanctions” in his international discourse, likened restrictions on North Korea to the Nazi siege of Leningrad during World War II, an event that resulted in the death of his infant brother.
In his Thursday comments, Putin reiterated calls for a re-evaluation of these sanctions, particularly those affecting labour migration, claiming they deprive North Korean families of earnings to feed their children.
“Does this situation not remind you of anything?” Putin asked, drawing parallels with World War II. “Is this humane?”
Putin’s demands and nuclear warning
His visit to Pyongyang followed recent demands for ending the Ukraine war, proposing a ceasefire and negotiations conditioned on Kyiv withdrawing troops from four eastern regions claimed by Moscow, and renouncing NATO aspirations. Ukraine and its allies swiftly rejected this proposal, viewing it as demanding capitulation and territorial concessions.
In the days following, Putin and his aides pressed Western nations to take the proposal seriously, warning of increasingly severe terms and deteriorating battlefield conditions.
The Russian leader also suggested Moscow could adjust its nuclear doctrine in response to new Western technologies lowering the threshold for nuclear use. Russia holds the world’s largest arsenal of tactical nuclear weapons, designed for limited battlefield scenarios with lower yields.
Earlier this year, Putin ordered military exercises employing such weapons in response to Britain’s endorsement of Ukrainian strikes on Russia and French President Emmanuel Macron’s hints at potential Western troop deployments in Ukraine.
Regularly warning Western adversaries against pursuing Moscow’s ‘strategic defeat’ in the Ukrainian conflict, Putin reiterated on Thursday, “This could mark the end of a thousand-year history of the Russian state. I think everyone understands this. So the question is: Why should we fear? Wouldn’t it be better to go all the way?”