Three highlights of Putin's visit to North Korea

It was undoubtedly a whirlwind visit: Putin arrived at 2 a.m., left for Vietnam late at night, and spent no more than 24 hours in Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours, the relationship between Russia and North Korea has clearly taken a big step forward.

This is purely my personal opinion and does not represent any organization. Here are the three main points.

Because of North Korea's special national conditions and traditions, what we will see is definitely a super grand ceremony.

I believe this must be Putin's first feeling. This is a scene that he is unlikely to see in any other country, even in Vietnam.

But Putin is still Putin, and he habitually arrives at two in the morning. Kim Jong-un personally went to the airport to greet him.

We saw Putin get off the plane, the two hugged and talked, laughed heartily, and then left together in a special car.

Looking at the photos and videos, the next thing is the super grand ceremonies in Pyongyang. The two also watched a performance together. The scene was so grand and the performance was so wonderful that it was breathtaking.

As a small episode, according to media reports, Putin presented Kim Jong-un with a Russian luxury car. When he approached the car, Putin sat in the driver's seat on a whim, and Kim Jong-un then sat in the passenger seat...

But in the end, it was Kim Jong-un who sat in the driver's seat and took Putin for a ride in Pyongyang.

According to the United States and South Korea, Putin's gift of this luxury car violated international resolutions on sanctions against North Korea...

This is a historic visit. The last time Putin visited North Korea was 24 years ago in 2000, when Putin was still very young and had just taken charge of Russia. He was received by Kim Jong-un's father, Kim Jong-il.

Without a doubt, the most significant achievement is the signing of the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Russia and North Korea.

According to Reuters, the treaty includes a mutual defense clause, under which the two countries agree to help each other resist "external aggression."

TASS quoted Putin as saying: "The treaty provides for mutual assistance in the event of aggression against one side." Moreover, this document forms the basis for future relations between Russia and North Korea.

This is a major breakthrough in Russia-North Korea relations, but it also brings up a series of questions.

I saw a CNN analysis article saying:

If this is a collective defense treaty, does Russia’s nuclear deterrence now extend to North Korea, and vice versa? Does this “military-technical cooperation” include holding joint military exercises and establishing joint forces to protect the two countries’ borders? Who else could join this agreement in the future?

"Neither Putin nor Kim Jong-un provided any specific details."

According to foreign media reports, Kim Jong-un stated in front of Putin that North Korea "will unconditionally support all Russian policies."

Putin mentioned Russia's struggle with the United States. "I mean, we must oppose the hegemonic policy implemented by the United States for decades, and the imperialist policy of the United States and its satellite countries against Russia."

Putin also extended an invitation to Kim Jong-un, "I am very happy about our new meeting, and I hope that the next meeting will be held in Russia, in Moscow."

It's very simple. Russia and North Korea are getting closer and closer, which has a significant impact on the situation on the peninsula. The two most nervous and anxious countries now are undoubtedly South Korea and the United States.

Before Putin arrived, US and South Korean diplomats made an emergency phone call to discuss countermeasures for Putin's visit.

I have said before that what South Korea is most worried about is that this will boost North Korea's confidence, especially with the help of Russia, which will improve the level of North Korea's missiles and satellites, which will pose a serious threat to South Korea.

What the United States is most worried about is that Russia has received help again, and it is not ruled out that North Korea will deliver much-needed weapons to Russia for use on the battlefield in Ukraine.

A CNN report stated that what worries the West even more is that Russia-North Korea's "military and technological cooperation" "may mean more artillery shells and missiles will be shipped from North Korean factories to the Ukrainian front."

Anyway, according to South Korea's intelligence agency, South Korea has detected that North Korea has shipped at least 10,000 containers to Russia, which can hold up to 4.8 million artillery shells.

South Korea's statement was very certain, but Russia and North Korea flatly denied it.

Russia's attitude is also very clear. It will cooperate and develop relations with North Korea in the way of its own choice and will not let any country tell Russia what to do, especially the United States.

In other words, what Russia wants to do is ineffective against opposition from the United States, and even more ineffective against opposition from South Korea.

Obviously, as I said before, Putin's visit kills three birds with one stone.

1. Show the world that Russia also has many friends. Especially when the Ukrainian Peace Summit came to an end, Putin immediately visited North Korea and Vietnam.

2. Strengthen relations with the two countries and deepen cooperation. This is not just a symbolic visit, there must be a lot of substantive cooperation content.

3. Take the initiative to fight back against the encirclement and suppression by the United States and the West. The United States plays the Ukraine card, the Caucasus card, and the economic sanctions card against Russia, and Russia also plays cards, such as the Peninsula card and the Look East card.

I saw that Russian expert Kortunov was quoted as saying that Putin's visit demonstrated Russia's political support for North Korea and also showed that the Western countries' plan to isolate Russia has been thwarted.

To some extent, this is also a way for Russia and North Korea to jointly cope with the strategic squeeze from the United States, and to keep each other warm.

Putin is taking the initiative, but it is not easy for Putin either.

We arrived in Pyongyang at two in the morning, and after a whole day of high-intensity activities, we left late at night and arrived in Hanoi in the early morning of the next day.

Next, he was busy in Vietnam...