South Korean Foreign Minister Tae-yul Cho accused Russia of engaging in illegal arms trading with North Korea on Saturday during the 79th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, reiterating that North Korea continues to pose a threat to peace on the Korean peninsula with its ongoing development of nuclear weapons.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea accused North Korea of providing Russia with missiles and ammunition in return for economic and military assistance from Russia. The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions on North Korea that prohibit states from trading weapons and materials that can be used to produce nuclear weapons with North Korea.
“It is truly regrettable that Russia, one of the founding countries of the non-proliferation regime and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is engaging in illegal arms trade with North Korea,” Tae-Yul Choi announced.
Minister Cho argued that South Korea, which was left in ruins after the Korean War, was able to achieve democracy and prosperity based on UN aid, to showcase the importance of restoring multilateralism to attain sustainable peace.
Cho criticized North Korea’s nuclear program and human rights violations as “two sides of the same coin,” stating that North Korea suppresses its people’s rights and diverts scarce resources, which should feed the hungry, to develop weapons of mass destruction.
Recent evidence indicates that military cooperation between North Korea and Russia has been growing more frequent. The data from global security non-profit C4ADS, shared with The Washington Post, reveals that between August 2023 and January 2024, over 74,000 metric tons of explosives were shipped from two Russian Far East ports to 16 locations, primarily near Russia’s western borders close to Ukraine. According to investigations conducted by the CSIS Beyond Parallel, at least 25 deliveries of munitions from Russia visited North Korea’s port of Najin between August 2023 and February 2024.
On June 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a mutual defense pledge against foreign attacks. Following the agreement, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Friday that Russia must adhere to UN sanctions against North Korea.
Since 2006, North Korea has been subject to UN sanctions attributed to its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Since then, The United Nations Security Council has passed nine resolutions targeting these activities, exacting a heavy toll on the nation’s economy.
Despite sanctions earlier this month, North Korea publicly revealed photos of a uranium enrichment facility for the first time, marking its first disclosure of such a facility since its initial nuclear test in 2006.
In light of the escalating aggression of North Korea, South Korea formulated the August 15 Unification Doctrine in order to envision a free and democratic unified Korea. It aims to activate unification programs by improving North Korean human rights, providing humanitarian aid, and establishing a dialogue council to boost international solidarity on the Korean Peninsula.
