China responded cautiously this week as Russia and North Korea drew closer to each other and vowed to counter the US-led West, avoiding any trilateral arrangement which may complicate its relations with other nations.
On Wednesday in Pyongyang, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shared his “innermost thoughts” with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
China’s foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said that Tuesday’s briefing was just for a bilateral exchange between Russia and North Korea without giving more explanations.
“According to Tong Zhao of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, China has some reservations about the increased military cooperation between North Korea and Russia which can undermine Beijing’s near-monopoly on geo-political influence over Pyongyang.”
“China is also careful not to create the perception of a de facto alliance among Beijing, Moscow, and Pyongyang, as this will not be helpful for China to maintain practical cooperation with key Western countries,” Zhao said.
Since last year when North Korea eased up border controls against pandemics, its trade with China has been restore while political engagements have been dominated by Russia under Kim.
Kim paid his first post-pandemic visit to Russia last year where he met Putin, marking the first time a world leader had visited the politically isolated country since the reopening of borders
US officials and UN sanctions monitors said that Russian forces used banned ballistic missiles made in North Korea in Ukraine. This is unprecedented according to several US allies.
Beijing proclaimed an “unlimited” relationship with Moscow just days before it launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 but so far declined from providing weapons or ammunition for the campaign.
While joining Russia in blocking new Security Council sanctions on North Korea, China abstained when Moscow vetoed extending a panel monitoring enforcement of sanctions.
One South Korean government official who preferred anonymity stated there seemed tension between Beijing and Pyongyang over thousands of North Korean workers remaining illegally in China under UN resolutions’ violation.
‘More crucial concerns’
North Korea’s largest trading partner by far is China, and the two have a mutual defense treaty dating back to the 1960s, the only such pact either country has with any nation.
This relationship is not expect to change, but Kim’s engagement with Putin and its unpredictable behavior add new uncertainties for China, said Yun Sun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center in Washington.
“I think until there is clear development and policy that challenges China’s position, I’d say China is willing to sit aside and see how things go,” she said.
According to Sun, this distracts America from closer ties between Russia and North Korea which may not be bad for Beijing.
North Korea gave rare public rebukes to China over Li Qiang the Chinese premier who talked about North Korea’s nuclear weapons while in a summit with South and Japanese leaders in May.
This was as Putin visited North as his visit coincided with senior Chinese foreign and defense officials’ visit to Seoul on Wednesday.
Conversely, when discussing this issue, South Korea said that “Our side expressed concern about Russian president Putin’s visit to North Korea scheduled on the same day, and China expressed hope that exchanges between Russia and North Korea would contribute to peace and stability in the region.”
Niklas Swanstrom, Director of the Institute for Security and Development Policy in Sweden says “China would most probably be worried if North Korea’s partnership with Russia leads to any adventurism which makes Beijing’s regional situation more difficult,” .
“He said ‘they want China to trade; they have other concerns like rebuilding their economy among others,”.
