Russia is losing an estimated 1200 soldiers a day. Enter the “alternative pipeline”:North Koreans in Russian uniform.
So far,it’s been a strategic shoulder shrug from the US and NATO,but an “avoid World War III” strategy could make authoritarian aggression more likely.
The Kyiv Post and Interfax-Ukraine this week quoted intelligence sources saying six North Korean officers were killed on the Russian frontline in Ukraine on October 3.
China is by far North Korea’s largest trading partner,and the two share a history going back to Beijing’s support of Pyongyang during the 1950-1953 Korean War.
While North Korea sends balloons of putrid rubbish to the south,it is trying to portray a friendly face at the Paris Olympics.
Councillor and former mayor Jilly Gibson has declared she won’t abide by new social media rules she believes are targeted at her administration of a local Facebook page.
Some analysts worry that Western desensitisation to Putin’s warnings,particularly about using nuclear weapons,has created a precarious situation.
Kim has made two trips to Russia’s Far East since 2019. Putin is now expected to arrive in North Korea on Tuesday for the first time since 2000.
The visa deal comes as Canberra and Beijing agree to new forms of military communication to prevent Australian Defence personnel being put at risk.
K-pop is blasting into North Korea once more as bizarre tactics ratchet up tensions on the peninsula. We explore what’s behind this “tit-for-tat” in an Explainer updated from earlier this year.
It would be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s first trip to North Korea in more than two decades,after he visited Kim Jong-il – current leader Kim Jong-un’s father – in 2000.