(Bloomberg) – Russian president Vladimir Putin said he cannot rule out that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will receive high-precision weapons in response to Western military aid to Ukraine.
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“We reserve the right to supply weapons to other parts of the world,” Putin said at a news conference in Hanoi late Thursday. “Given our agreements with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, I do not rule this out.”
The two leaders signed an agreement on Wednesday to provide immediate military assistance if either of them is attacked, rekindling an agreement from the Cold War when the Soviet Union was a major backer of Pyongyang. Kim said the agreement elevated relations with Russia to an alliance.
The pact, called the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, also says Russia and North Korea will work together to strengthen their defense capabilities while expanding trade and investment cooperation.
The warning is likely to upset the US and its partners and increase tensions. It also increases risks for Western countries responding to provocations from Moscow and Pyongyang.
“Westerners give weapons to Ukraine and say ‘we have no control over how they are used afterwards,’” Putin told reporters in response to a question about the supply of advanced weapons. “We can say that too.”
South Korea said earlier on Thursday it would reevaluate its policy to ban the export of lethal aid to countries such as Ukraine and expressed concern about the pact between Moscow and Pyongyang. Putin told reporters that it would be a mistake if South Korea supplied weapons to Kiev.
The US, South Korea and Japan have accused Kim’s regime of sending ammunition and ballistic missiles to help Putin in his war against Ukraine. Moscow and Pyongyang have denied the arms transfers, despite ample evidence showing they occurred.
Putin also said Russia is considering changes to its nuclear doctrine in response to discussions in the West about “lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons” and developing less powerful weapons. Russia recently held combat exercises to practice the use of tactical nuclear weapons.
The Russian leader has repeatedly brandished threats to use nuclear weapons since beginning his invasion in February 2022, drawing condemnation from the US and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies.
Still, Putin said Russia does not need to introduce the idea of a so-called preventive strike. “In the event of a retaliatory attack, the enemy is guaranteed to be destroyed,” he said.
Putin was in North Korea for the first time in 24 years before traveling to Vietnam.
(Updates with additional comments from Putin from ninth paragraph.)
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