The United States, South Korea, and Japan have condemned the deepening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, while a top North Korean military official has reiterated Pyongyang's support for Moscow's war against Ukraine.
The three Western allies said in a joint statement on June 24 that the increasing ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, including arms transfers that aid Russia's war in Ukraine, serve to "prolong the suffering of the Ukrainian people, violate multiple United Nations Security Council Resolutions, and threaten stability in both Northeast Asia and Europe."
The statement also said that the recent signing of a strategic partnership treaty between Russia and North Korea during Russian President Vladimir Putin's June 19 visit "should be of grave concern to anyone with an interest in maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, upholding the global nonproliferation regime, and supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and independence against Russia’s brutal aggression."
The three allies reaffirmed their intention to strengthen diplomatic and security cooperation to counter threats posed by North Korea to regional and global security, the statement said.
Washington and Seoul have accused Russia and North Korea of violating international law by trading arms, including the provision of North Korean missiles and munitions used on the Ukrainian battlefield.
The Washington Post reported on June 22 that Russia may have received about 1.6 million artillery shells from North Korea, while military analysts have said that North Korean missiles have been fired by Russian forces at Ukraine.
Moscow and Pyongyang have denied any such arms transfers.
The pact signed last week by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un commits each side to provide immediate military assistance if either state comes under armed aggression.
On June 24, a top North Korean military official criticized Washington for its military assistance to Ukraine and reiterated Pyongyang's support for Moscow in the war, according to state media.
Pak Jong Chon, one of North Korea's top military officials, said that Russia had the "right to opt for any kind of retaliatory strike" should it be attacked, and warned that Washington could provoke a "world war" should it continue pushing Ukraine into a "proxy war" against Russia.
Last week, Washington said that Ukrainian forces had the green light to use U.S.-supplied weapons to strike Russian forces anywhere across the border into Russia.