Overview

• North Korea and Russia co-hosted a banquet in Pyongyang on June 19 to mark the first anniversary of their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership treaty, which pledges mutual military support in the event of armed attack.
• North Korea’s foreign minister hailed the pact as an invincible alliance, underscoring its strategic importance for bilateral defence cooperation.
• Under the treaty, Pyongyang has committed approximately 14,000 troops to Russia’s Ukraine campaign and agreed to dispatch an additional 6,000 military engineers and sappers to clear mines and rebuild infrastructure in the Kursk region.
• Japanese broadcaster NHK reports that North Korea is considering sending up to 25,000 workers to a drone production facility in Russia’s Alabuga Special Economic Zone to boost drone assembly and gain operational experience.
• Seoul and Washington have expressed grave concern over the deepening military cooperation, warning that the deployments violate UN Security Council resolutions.