Transaction or Transformation? Inside the Russia-North Korea Relationship

In this episode of The Diplomat’s Asia Geopolitics Podcast, hosts Ankit Panda and Katie Putz examine the status of the Russia-North Korea partnership. Since the signing of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty in 2024, the two have held three strategic dialogues, the most recent in late July in Moscow. How transactional is the massive shift in their relations and how sensitive is it to the Ukraine war? And what does China — which has its own nuanced relations with North Korea and Russia — think about the growing closeness between Moscow and Pyongyang?

You can subscribe to The Diplomat’s Asia Geopolitics podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; and watch the episode on YouTube.