Lavrov in Pyongyang: The Russian Foreign Minister’s visit to North Korea following the meeting between Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in September
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In the game of alliances, those who remain outside the Western chessboard become closer.
During Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s visit to Pyongyang, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared that he wanted to build a future-oriented relationship with Russia: “a stable and far-sighted plan.”
Lavrov, for his part, condemned the “dangerous” military policies of Washington and its allies, as well as the intensification of military activities by the United States, Japan and South Korea in the region. According to the Russian Foreign Minister, the Americans are building “strategic infrastructure, including nuclear, in the region.”
After the meeting between Putin and Kim Jong Un in September
The mid-September meeting between Kim Jong Un and Putin in the Russian Far East helped strengthen ties between Moscow and Pyongyang.
“After this historic summit, we can safely say that relations between the two countries have reached a qualitatively new and strategic level,” the Russian minister told his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui.
Energy chapter: Moscow helps Pyongyang
Moscow wants to help North Korea meet its energy needs, Lavrov told Russian media, citing “geological exploration projects to supply energy resources and other goods” that North Korea needs.
These two energy issues will be discussed at a joint meeting in November, he added.
Lavrov, who laid wreaths at monuments dedicated to former North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on Thursday morning, had arrived in Pyongyang a day earlier after traveling to Beijing with the Russian president.
North Korea’s support for Russia in the war in Ukraine
At a welcome dinner, he praised Pyongyang’s support for the Russian military offensive in Ukraine.
The September summit and strengthening ties between Russia and North Korea have raised fears in the West that Pyongyang could supply Moscow with weapons for its military operations in Ukraine.
Last week, the US said deliveries were already underway and North Korea had delivered more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and ammunition to Russia in recent weeks.