North Korea-Russia treaty comes into force

5/12/2024 5:52

        The "Comprehensive Strategic
        Partnership Treaty" agreed by the leaders of North Korea and
        Russia in June came into force on Wednesday with the exchange
        of "ratification instruments" in Moscow, the North's KCNA news
        agency reported on Thursday.
        
        The treaty was signed during Russian President Vladimir
        Putin's visit to Pyongyang in June and a summit with North
        Korea's Kim Jong Un, and includes a mutual defence pact for
        immediate military assistance if either faces armed aggression.
        
        It "will serve as a strong driving force accelerating the
        establishment of independent and just multi-polarized world
        order without domination, subjugation and hegemony," KCNA said.
        
        Putin's visit and the agreement on furthering military
        cooperation between the two countries came amid Pyongyang's
        escalating involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, with more
        than 10,000 North Korean troops deployed to fight with Russia.
        
        Neither country has acknowledged the deployment or the
        shipments of thousands of containers of ammunition from the
        North as well as mobile howitzers and rocket launchers.