SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Australia’s foreign minister said Tuesday the recent defense deal between North Korea and Russia was “destabilizing” and “risky for the world,” after she visited the tense border village shared by North and South Korea on Tuesday.
In June, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a pact stipulating mutual military assistance if either country is attacked, deepening worries about the expanding ties between the countries. The U.S. and its partners have steadfastly accused North Korea of supplying much-needed conventional arms to Russia for its war in Ukraine in return for military and economic assistance.
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CORRECTS THE SOURCE TO UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, NOT AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY REPUBLIC OF KOREA - In this photo provided by United Nation Command, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, center left, and UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay, center right, come out from the U.N. Command Military Armistice Commission meeting room at the border village of the Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (United Nation Command via AP)
CORRECTS THE SOURCE TO UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, NOT AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY REPUBLIC OF KOREA - In this photo provided by United Nation Command, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong visits the border village of the Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (United Nation Command via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong speaks to the media after visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, left, talks with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, left, talks with UNCMAC Australian soldiers after visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, talks with UNCMAC Australian soldiers before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong shakes hands with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul prior to their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, is escorted by UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, left, is escorted by UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay, second from left, before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
“I also want to say something about the security pact between North Korea and Russia. And say again, this is destabilizing. This is risky for the world and again we say Russia is behaving in ways which are not conducive to peace but are escalatory,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters following a visit to the southern side of the Korean border village of Panmunjom.
Wong condemned North Korea’s extended run of missile tests that she said threaten regional security. “We share great concerns about DPRK’s escalatory reactions, destabilizing actions,” she said, referring to North Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Also Tuesday, Wong met South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul in Seoul and agreed to work together with the international community to cope with the North Korean-Russian military partnerships, according to South Korea's Foreign Ministry. Wong also met South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and exchanged opinions on how to improve bilateral relations, Yoon's office said in a statement.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have been running high in recent months, with North Korea flying trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea and continuing weapons tests. South Korea has responded by resuming anti-Pyongyang propaganda broadcasts and live-fire drills at border areas.
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Associated Press video journalist Kim Yong Ho contributed to this report from Paju, South Korea.
CORRECTS THE SOURCE TO UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, NOT AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY REPUBLIC OF KOREA - In this photo provided by United Nation Command, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, center left, and UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay, center right, come out from the U.N. Command Military Armistice Commission meeting room at the border village of the Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (United Nation Command via AP)
CORRECTS THE SOURCE TO UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, NOT AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY REPUBLIC OF KOREA - In this photo provided by United Nation Command, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong visits the border village of the Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (United Nation Command via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong speaks to the media after visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, left, talks with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, left, talks with UNCMAC Australian soldiers after visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, talks with UNCMAC Australian soldiers before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong shakes hands with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul prior to their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul during their meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Jeon Heon-kyun/Pool Photo via AP)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, right, is escorted by UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, left, is escorted by UNC DCDR Derek Allen Macaulay, second from left, before visiting the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the border between North and South Korea, at the JSA Visitor Center in Paju, South Korea, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
