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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stands for a photo with Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of a summit in Vladivostok, Russia, on April 25, 2019. (AP/Yonhap)

North Korea and Russia are cozying up to each other both strategically and militarily. Reports suggest that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will soon visit Russia for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. If Pyongyang and Moscow engage in a dangerous trade of weapons and military technology and establish a system of cooperation that transcends the Cold War era, South Korea could find itself facing a daunting national security crisis.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol said in a summit with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Wednesday that “attempts to engage in military cooperation with North Korea, which is damaging the peace of the international community, should be immediately halted,” referring to Russia.

White House national security advisor Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that North Korea will “pay a price” if it provides Russia with weapons for its war against Ukraine. In short, the South Korean and American governments sent back-to-back warning messages against military cooperation between North Korea and Russia.

A visit to Russia by Kim Jong-un and an arms deal between the two international pariahs would certainly present a grave national security threat to South Korea. In exchange for providing Russia with weaponry, North Korea could seek to acquire technology for nuclear submarines or spy satellites. And if North Korea and Russia boost their strategic cooperation, North Korea could nullify sanctions with the full support of Russia on the UN Security Council and even more brazenly accelerate its development of nuclear weapons and missiles.

Even more seriously, North Korea could use its cozy ties with Russia as leverage to arrange joint military exercises with China and Russia, setting off a full-fledged military confrontation on the Korean Peninsula between South Korea, the US and Japan on one side and North Korea, China and Russia on the other.

It’s truly despicable that Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine in breach of its responsibilities as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and that now, as its weapons stockpile runs low, it’s seeking to reach a dangerous deal with North Korea.

Nevertheless, the Yoon administration also needs to recognize the downsides of a foreign policy that leans too heavily on military cooperation with the US and Japan and to devote diplomatic resources to managing tensions. South Korea agreed to form what amounts to a quasi-alliance with the US and Japan during a trilateral summit at Camp David last month, increasing the likelihood of a head-on collision with North Korea, China and Russia. And Yoon has made the situation even worse by goading China and Russia as he seeks to exploit foreign policy for his ideological politics at home.

All this makes diplomacy with China even more important. While China carried out joint military exercises with Russia in the East Sea that separates Korea and Japan in July, it has refrained from providing weapons to Russia and has also been signaling that it wants to maintain stable relations with South Korea.

South Korea is in dire need of a multifaceted foreign policy that will enable us to manage relations with China while also keeping North Korea, China and Russia from forging closer military ties.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]