US says Russia is close to accepting North Korea's nuclear program

At a UN Security Council meeting held last Wednesday(18), the United States stated that Russia is close to accepting North Korea's nuclear program. According to the USA, the acceptance of the North Korean nuclear program is due to the military cooperation and mutual defense agreements signed between the countries in November this year.

“Alarmingly, we assess that Russia may be close to accepting North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, reversing Moscow’s decades-long commitment to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.”said US Ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

In addition to the agreement, what drew the US' attention to raise the issue in the Security Council was the statement by Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, stating that the disagreement over the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula had already been resolved. Lavrov concluded by saying that North Korea has the right to have its weapons as they are its only defense.

Russians defend cooperation with North Korea

Still at the meeting, Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, defended growing cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang as a right of Russian and North Korean sovereignty.

“Russian cooperation with the DPRK is in accordance with international law, not in violation of it”he said, using the acronym for North Korea's official name.

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the largest country in terms of territory in the world and the country considered the most closed in the world have strengthened their relations, including visits by Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin between the two countries of recurrently.

_{Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin have strengthened diplomatic relations between North Korea and Russia (Photo: reproduction/Vladimir Smirnov/Sputnik)}

Recently, Russia received reinforcements from North Korean soldiers in the fight against Ukrainian forces present in the Russian territory of Kursk.

North Korea has faced sanctions from the UN Security Council since 2006 and the measures are strengthened year after year with the aim of inhibiting the production of nuclear weapons on North Korean soil.

United Kingdom and South Korea criticize Russia's position

During yesterday's meeting (18), the United Kingdom and South Korea openly criticized Lavrov's speeches. According to the countries, Russia's acceptance of the North Korean nuclear program will undermine the global nuclear non-proliferation regime.

The UK's deputy ambassador to the UN said the Russian comment was a reckless deviation from the countries' complete and irrevocable nuclear disarmament agreement.

Experiencing a political crisis after the repeal of the martial law that its president tried to put into effect, South Korea is also worried about the rapprochement between Russia and North Korea.

The country even asked the United States to produce its own nuclear weapons instead of relying exclusively on the anti-nuclear umbrella of the North American country that opposed the South Korean plan, but promised to provide more details on protection. to the country.

Featured photo: UN Security Council meeting (Reproduction/UNTV/UN)