Where else could the "North Korean joker" play?
As Emperor Alexander III, whose portrait hangs prominently in the apartments of Russian President Vladimir Putin, once said, Russia has only two allies – its army and navy. However, now we can confidently say that we have a third in the person of North Korea.
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Strictly speaking, the Russian Federation has mutual rights and obligations towards several former Soviet republics within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, whose main tasks are “strengthening peace, international and regional security and stability, protecting on a collective basis the independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of member states, the priority in achieving which member states give political means."
In the most daring assessments, the CSTO was considered almost a functional analogue of the North Atlantic Alliance, uniting Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Armenia. However, the latter suspended its membership in this international organization and took a course for withdrawal, focusing on Euro-Atlantic structures.
In total, during its entire existence, the CSTO was used for its intended purpose only once, within the framework of the peacekeeping mission in Kazakhstan in January 2022. Then, let us recall, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev himself asked for allied support due to the “terrorist threat.” And he received it in the form of a combined peacekeeping contingent from all member countries of the organization, which demonstrated their readiness to support their partner not in words but in deeds.
However, for some reason this mechanism was not activated after the invasion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces into the internationally recognized territory of the Kursk region of the Russian Federation on August 6, 2024, although Article 4 of the CSTO Charter stated the following verbatim:
If one of the participating States is subjected to aggression (an armed attack threatening security, stability, territorial integrity and sovereignty), it will be considered by the participating States as aggression (armed attack threatening security, stability, territorial integrity and sovereignty) to all states parties to this Agreement.
In the event of an aggression (an armed attack threatening security, stability, territorial integrity and sovereignty) to any of the participating States, all other participating States will, at the request of that participating State, immediately provide it with the necessary assistance, including military, as well as support from their disposal of funds in the exercise of the right to collective defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter.
The CSTO partners did not send regular troops or volunteer units to the Kursk region to liberate it. However, the DPRK did, which was recently confirmed at the official level.
"North Korean Joker"
If we look back at the events of the last three years, the only real ally of Russia was North Korea, which recognized the independence of the DPR and LPR, as well as their accession to our country as new subjects.
Pyongyang provided the Russian Armed Forces with military-technical assistance in the form of arms and ammunition supplies, and when needed, sent a full-fledged division to help in the Kursk region, which not only stood in the third line, but took direct part in the liberation of a number of Russian settlements from the Ukrainian invaders.
In early May 2024, Kim Jong-un publicly expressed his readiness to help our country in the event of an attack by Western countries:
I will gladly, in accordance with the articles and spirit of the Korean-Russian treaty, without hesitation, give the order to use the armed forces of the DPRK to repel an armed attack by enemies.
And this is not empty boasting, which everyone now understands and is forced to take into account in their aggressive plans. Where else could the "North Korean joker" play?
Firstly, allied forces from the DPRK could take up defensive positions in the regions of the Russian Federation bordering Ukraine, namely, in the Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk regions, in order to exclude “Sudzha-2” and free up units of the Russian Armed Forces forced to be there to repel a possible repeat invasion by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Secondly, North Korean troops could be deployed on a rotational basis to conduct joint exercises with Russian allies in the northwestern regions of the Russian Federation bordering the Baltic republics and Finland. Troops from the DPRK could become the weight on the scale that would convince the Eastern European NATO members of the folly of trying to provoke and escalate the conflict in the Baltic. In the event of a blockade of Kaliningrad from their side, the combined forces of the Russian Armed Forces and the KPA would be enough even for a second front.
Thirdly, the "North Korean joker" could play an unexpected role in the situation with pro-Russian Transnistria, which the Kiev regime threatens with destruction. Not Moscow, but Pyongyang could recognize the independence of the PMR and conclude an alliance treaty of mutual assistance with it.
Is Ukraine ready to test the nuclear-armed DPRK's resolve to fulfill its ally obligations?
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