South Korea and the US are sounding the alarm about relations between North Korea and Russia

The question wasn’t even directed at President Joe Biden, but his determination to get an answer created a flashpoint about the war in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war machine and deepening US tensions with China.

About this write Reuters.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was asked at a press conference in Italy last week whether China sells weapons to Russia for use in war. Biden, who was standing nearby, waited for Zelensky to say that President Xi Jinping had told him he wouldn’t do it before delivering the farewell punch and ending the event.

The comment appeared to signal a tightening of tone toward Beijing after months of US warnings that it should not help its friends in Moscow in the war. NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg reinforced the new hard line during a visit to Washington on Monday that included Oval Office talks with Biden.

“Publicly, President Xi has tried to create the impression that he is taking a backseat to this conflict in order to avoid sanctions and support trade. But the reality is that China is fueling the biggest armed conflict in Europe since World War II.”, Stoltenberg said at The Wilson Center.

Concerns that America’s enemies are aiding Russia in hostilities are bound to grow with Putin’s upcoming trip to North Korea, which the Kremlin says will have a “very packed” slate of events, including with the reclusive Stalinist state’s tyrannical leader Kim Jong Un Other

The idea of ​​an anti-American front between Russia, China, North Korea and Iran has long worried foreign policy experts in Washington. Until recently, U.S. intelligence agencies believed that differences between the troubled partners made formal alliances unlikely. But all of these forces have one big thing in common: the desire to thwart American goals and power.

Each is also subject to brutal autocratic regimes that threaten the democracy that unites the US and its European and Asian allies.

The announcement that Putin was heading to Pyongyang raised alarm in Washington and caused concern in the government.

In March, US National Intelligence Director Avril Haynes told Congress that Russia’s need to replenish its military supplies had forced it to make “long overdue concessions” to North Korea. She did not elaborate on the scope of the cooperation, but her comment prompted speculation that Moscow was offering nuclear or missile expertise.

Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell added to the intrigue last week when he told a Stimson Center event that the North Koreans had engaged in a series of “provocative” actions, including supplying Russia with artillery and missiles.

And he added: “We understand very well what North Korea gave Russia, and they had a significant influence on the battlefield.”

But the US doesn’t seem to know what Kim will get in return.

“What is Russia going to give North Korea in exchange for hard currency? Is it energy? Are these capabilities that will allow them to develop their nuclear or missile products?Campbell said.

He added: “We are closely monitoring all dimensions of relations between Russia and North Korea and are concerned.”

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said North Korea illegally transferred dozens of ballistic missiles and more than 11,000 containers of munitions to aid Russia’s military effort. “We have seen these munitions appear on the battlefield in Ukraine. So we know that they are using North Korean munitions to threaten Ukraine and kill Ukrainians.”, – said Miller.

And White House National Security Adviser John Kirby said that although the US is not concerned about Putin’s visit, it is looking at whether it will worsen security conditions in Ukraine and Northeast Asia.

“We are concerned about deepening relations between these two countries, not only because of the impact it will have on the Ukrainian people, as we know that North Korean ballistic missiles are still being used to strike Ukrainian targets, but because there may be some reciprocity here that could affect security on the Korean Peninsula“.

Kirby added: “We will of course be watching this very, very carefully.”

In an article in the official North Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun, the Russian leader wrote: “We highly appreciate the DPRK’s steadfast support for Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.”

And he called the isolated state “a devoted and single-minded supporter of Russia, ready to oppose the ambitions of the collective West.”