South Korea confronts Russia over North Korea nuclear ties – By Joel Gehrke (Washington Examiner) / Jan 22, 2024
South Korea has identified “a probability” that Russia will help North Korea enhance its nuclear weapons program in the course of the burgeoning partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang.
“Russia’s use of the DPRK’s weapons are direct violations of multiple Security Council resolutions,” South Korean Ambassador Hwang Joon-kook said at a U.N. Security Council forum in New York on Monday. “What is more problematic for us is a probability that [the] DPRK may receive, in return from Russia, something important for its military capabilities — in particular, nuclear and missile-related technologies.”
The South Korean envoy’s statement confronted Russia with a misgiving that has festered in the months since Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at a Russian spaceport in September. Russia called the Security Council meeting to complain about Western military aid for Ukraine, but Putin’s dealmaking with Kim galvanized Indo-Pacific criticism of Moscow.
