PYONGYANG, North Korea: North Korea’s foreign ministry on Saturday criticised US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments on Pyongyang’s relations with Moscow, saying the remarks would “only escalate the dangerous political and military tension” on the Korean peninsula.
Blinken was in Seoul earlier this week after attending a G7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Japan. He met with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and other top officials.
During his visit to the South Korean capital, he said military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow were “growing and dangerous”, and urged Beijing, Pyongyang’s main ally, to exert influence and curb the nuclear-armed North’s activities.
Pyongyang on Saturday denounced Blinken’s statements as “irresponsible and provocative”.
The remarks “only escalate the dangerous political and military tension in the Korean peninsula and the region”, Pyongyang’s foreign ministry said, as per the state-run Korean Central News Agency.
The statement from Pyongyang urged the US to acknowledge the evolving reality of DPRK-Russia relations, using the official name for North Korea. Both historic allies, Russia and North Korea, face international sanctions—the former for its involvement in Ukraine and the latter for its nuclear weapons and missile programs.
The deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea has raised concerns, especially following a summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin in September. Reports from Seoul suggested that Pyongyang had supplied one million artillery rounds to support Moscow’s activities in Ukraine in exchange for advice on satellite technology.
Pyongyang said on Saturday that “no matter what others may say, the friendly and cooperative relations between the DPRK and Russia aspiring after independence, peace and friendship will steadily grow stronger”.
