HANOI, Vietnam (AP) 鈥� Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed that pledges mutual aid if either country faces 鈥渁ggression,鈥� a strategic pact that comes as both face escalating standoffs with the West.
were not immediately clear, but it could mark the strongest connection between Moscow and Pyongyang since the end of the Cold War. Both leaders described it as a major upgrade of their relations, covering security, trade, investment, cultural and humanitarian ties.
The summit came as Putin visited North Korea for the first time in 24 years and the U.S. and its allies expressed over a possible arms arrangement in which Pyongyang provides Moscow with badly needed munitions for its , in exchange for economic assistance and technology transfers that could enhance the threat posed by Kim鈥檚 nuclear weapons and missile program.
From North Korea, Putin traveled to Vietnam, where he exited his plane onto a red carpet and briefly shook hands with dignitaries while soldiers in white dress uniforms stood at attention. In Hanoi, Putin is scheduled to meet with Vietnam鈥檚 most powerful politician, Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, and , as the Russian leader seeks to strengthen ties with a longtime partner.
During Putin's visit to North Korea, Kim said the two countries had a 鈥渇iery friendship,鈥� and that the deal was their 鈥渟trongest ever treaty,鈥� putting the relationship at the level of an alliance. He vowed full support for Russia's war in Ukraine.
Putin called it a 鈥渂reakthrough document鈥� reflecting shared desires to move relations to a higher level.
North Korea and the former Soviet Union signed a treaty in 1961 that experts say necessitated Moscow鈥檚 military intervention if the North came under attack. The deal was discarded after the collapse of the USSR, replaced by one in 2000 that offered weaker security assurances. It wasn鈥檛 immediately clear if the new deal provides a similar level of protection as the 1961 treaty.
Kim met Putin at the airport, where the two shook hands, hugged twice and rode together in a limousine. The huge motorcade rolled through the capital鈥檚 brightly lit streets, where buildings were decorated with giant Russian flags and portraits of Putin.
After spending the night at a state guest house, Putin was welcomed Wednesday morning in a ceremony at the city鈥檚 main square, filled with what appeared to be tens of thousands of spectators, including children with balloons and people in coordinated T-shirts of the red, white and blue national colors of both countries. Crowds lining the streets chanted 鈥淲elcome Putin,鈥� and waved flowers and flags.
Putin and Kim saluted an honor guard and walked across a red carpet. Kim introduced key members of his leadership, including Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui; top aide and ruling party secretary Jo Yong Won; and the leader鈥檚 powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong.
At their talks, Putin thanked Kim for North Korea鈥檚 support in Ukraine, part of what he said was a 鈥渇ight against the imperialist hegemonistic policies of the U.S. and its satellites against the Russian Federation.鈥�
Putin praised ties that he traced to the Soviet army fighting the Japanese military on the Korean Peninsula at the end of World War II, and Moscow鈥檚 support for Pyongyang during the Korean War.
What kind of support was pledged in the agreement was not spelled out. Explanations of the agreement by the leaders did not specify what the 鈥渕utual assistance鈥� would be in the event of aggression against either country 鈥� troops, materiel or some other sort of aid.
Kim has used similar language before, consistently saying North Korea supports what he describes as a just action to protect Russia鈥檚 interests and blaming the crisis on the West鈥檚 鈥渉egemonic policy.鈥�
North Korea is under heavy U.N. Security Council sanctions over its weapons program, while Russia also faces sanctions by the U.S. and its Western partners over its invasion of Ukraine.
U.S. and South Korean officials accuse the North of providing Russia with artillery, missiles and other military equipment for use in Ukraine, possibly in return for key military technologies and aid. On Tuesday, a U.S. State Department spokesman said that in recent months, Washington has seen North Korea 鈥渦nlawfully transfer dozens of ballistic missiles and over 11,000 containers of munitions to aid Russia鈥檚 war effort.鈥�
Both Pyongyang and Moscow deny accusations of weapons transfers, which would violate multiple U.N. Security Council sanctions that Russia previously endorsed.
Along with China, Russia has provided political cover for Kim鈥檚 efforts to advance his nuclear arsenal, repeatedly blocking U.S.-led efforts to impose fresh U.N. sanctions on the North over its weapons tests.
In March, a ended monitoring of U.N. sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear program, prompting Western accusations that Moscow is seeking to avoid scrutiny as it buys weapons from Pyongyang.
Putin鈥檚 foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters in Pyongyang the leaders exchanged gifts. Putin presented Kim with a Russian-made Aurus limousine and other gifts, including a tea set and a naval officer鈥檚 dagger. Ushakov said Kim's presents to Putin included artwork depicting the Russian leader.
Later, Putin and Kim attended a concert featuring marching soldiers, weapons-throwing, dancing and patriotic songs. Putin clapped and spoke to Kim through a translator, saying something that made both laugh.
The Russian leader also visited the 小hurch of the Life-Giving Trinity in Pyongyang and gave a Trinity icon to the Orthodox church.
At a dinner before he left for Vietnam, Putin cited a proverb that said 鈥渁 close neighbor is better than a distant relative,鈥� while Kim toasted the 鈥渋mmortality of the invincible DPRK-Russia relations that are the envy of the world.鈥�
The Kremlin鈥檚 website said the leaders signed an agreement to build a road bridge on their border, and another on cooperation in health care, medical education and science. Putin also said that Russia would not rule out developing military-technical cooperation with North Korea.
In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Putin鈥檚 visit illustrates how Russia tries, 鈥渋n desperation, to develop and to strengthen relations with countries that can provide it with what it needs to continue the war of aggression that it started against Ukraine.鈥�
Koo Byoungsam, spokesperson of South Korea鈥檚 Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said the Seoul government was still interpreting the results of the summit, including what Russia's response might be if the North comes under attack.
China is North Korea鈥檚 biggest ally and economic lifeline, accounting for most of the country鈥檚 trade. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said high-level exchanges between Moscow and Pyongyang are 鈥渂ilateral arrangements between two sovereign states,鈥� without giving a specific assessment of the agreements.
Sam Greene of the Center for European Policy Analysis said Putin鈥檚 trip to Pyongyang is an indication of how beholden he is to some other countries since invading Ukraine. Previously, 鈥渋t was always the North Koreans coming to Russia. It wasn鈥檛 the other way around,鈥� he said.
The trip is a good way to make 鈥渢he West nervous鈥� by demonstrating Moscow has interests and clout beyond Ukraine, Greene added.
The North could also seek to increase labor exports to Russia and other activities to get foreign currency in defiance of U.N. sanctions, according to the Institute for National Security Strategy, a think tank run by South Korea鈥檚 main spy agency. There will likely be talks about expanding cooperation in agriculture, fisheries and mining and further promoting Russian tourism to North Korea, the institute said.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are at their highest point in years, with the pace of both Kim鈥檚 involving the U.S., South Korea and Japan intensifying in a tit-for-tat cycle. The Koreas also have engaged in Cold War-style psychological warfare.
___
Kim reported from Seoul, South Korea.
Aniruddha Ghosal And Kim Tong-hyung, The Associated Press
