Putin-Kim Jong Un deal: What North Korea pact could mean for Ukraine

As North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pledges his “full support” for Russia’s yearslong war in Ukraine, it is still not clear exactly what this backing will look like for Moscow’s troops in the war-torn country—and what Pyongyang could get in return.

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in North Korea for his first visit to the secretive nation in nearly a quarter-century early local time on Wednesday, greeted by an extravagant welcoming ceremony in a packed main square in the country’s capital.

The Russian leader is holding talks with Kim during his brief trip, and Putin said on Wednesday that he is “confident that our negotiations today will be productive,” according to comments reported by Russian state media. Newsweek has emailed Russia’s Defense Ministry for comment.

Russia’s Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday that a “new fundamental document has been prepared,” designed as a fresh foundation for Russian-North Korean relations. State media had reported that the two leaders would sign what it termed a “comprehensive strategic partnership” treaty that addressed security issues.

North Korea has already provided weapons, including ballistic missiles, for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine, according to Western intelligence. Pyongyang and Moscow have denied this.

South Korea has said North Korea, officially known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), has provided thousands of shipments of munitions to Russia.

However, with no end to the Ukrainian conflict in sight, there are concerns over Moscow securing new supplies from Pyongyang, in exchange for boosting the country’s sluggish economy and helping along its nuclear weapons development program.

Ukraine, although now receiving new supplies promised by the U.S. in late April, is staring down Russian advances on the eastern front lines and continued missile and drone bombardment of its major hubs and infrastructure. Although Russia has transitioned its defense industry onto a war footing, additional supplies from North Korea could further strain Ukraine as it fights on multiple fronts.

The war has pushed Moscow closer to select allies and isolated the Kremlin from many Western nations, which experts suggest has been to Kim’s advantage. NATO countries, in turn, largely rallied around Ukraine, and the U.S. has drawn closer to South Korea, a move that has angered North Korea.

Pyongyang “expresses full support and solidarity to the Russian government, army and people in carrying out a special military operation in Ukraine to protect sovereignty, security interests, as well as territorial integrity,” Kim said in remarks carried by Russian state news agency, Tass. The Kremlin uses the term “special military operation” to refer to its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“We highly appreciate your consistent and unwavering support for Russian policy, including in the Ukrainian direction,” Putin said of South Korea.

Russia has tried to build up its relations “with countries that can provide it with what it needs to continue the war of aggression that it started against Ukraine,” U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, said during a joint press conference with NATO chief, Jens Stoltenberg, in Washington on Tuesday.

North Korea “is providing significant munitions to Russia” and “other weapons for use in Ukraine,” Blinken added.