MOSCOW: Russia and North Korea are similar in that they are both being subjected to substantial Western sanctions pressure, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
In a statement, the spokesperson claimed that the West used misleading arguments to drum up global support for the restrictions against North Korea. The EU, US, and other Western nations first imposed sanctions on Moscow in 2014, following a referendum in Crimea in which the people voted to join Russia. After the escalation of the Ukraine war in February 2022, much tougher and more sweeping steps against Russia were put in place. According to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affair’s estimates, the number of restrictions has exceeded over 20,000.
The North Korea has been under global sanctions, including UNSC sanctions, for decades over its missile and nuclear weapons programs. The number of such restrictions has surpassed 2,000.
Zakharova stated that both Russia and the North Korea are “going through incredible issues in terms of the sanctions war.” She said that the two nations “have a number of coinciding views on the global situation.” Zakharova was of the view that the sanctions against N Korea target the general population.
“The West again lied… [and] forced the world to believe it, adding then that [the sanctions against North Korea] were necessary to ensure security,” she said. This June, Russian leader Vladimir Putin paid an official visit to North Korea for the first time since 2000.
After talks, Putin and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un also signed a Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which includes a pledge by Russia and the North Korea to assist each other in case of foreign aggression.
The Russian president also highlighted North Korea’s right to take “reasonable measures” to ensure its security and sovereignty. He also condemned the “indefinite restrictions regime” that was “orchestrated by Washington” and imposed on North Korea by the UNSC.
“Overused Western propaganda figures can no longer hide their hostile geopolitical intentions, including in Northwestern Asia,” President Putin said during the visit. He said that “Moscow does not rule out the development of military cooperation with the North Korea,” given that Western countries are supplying advanced weapons to Kyiv en masse.
Washington and Seoul have accused North Korea of providing missiles as well as artillery to Russia, which both Moscow and Pyongyang have denied.
