‘Wake up!’ Iain Duncan Smith warns China is behind ‘dangerous’ Russia-North Korea cooperation
Iain Duncan Smith says there are sinister forces behind the Russia-North Korea cooperation
REUTERS / GB NEWS
Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith believes China is fuelling the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea.
It comes as North Korea’s Kim Jong Un promised “full and unconditional support” for Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday as the estranged leaders held a summit.
The US have warned that the apparent strengthening of ties between the two nations could result in a supply of ammunition for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
The meeting lasted over four hours at Russia’s spaceport in the Far East, but Duncan Smith believes there is a more sinister presence behind the move.
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Speaking on GB News, he claimed China is using North Korea as a cohort to supply its own weapons for Putin’s war in Ukraine.
“There is a bigger issue here”, he said.
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“It’s the link between China and North Korea.
“What we’ve got is a bit of a shuffle. China has already, we understand, been supplying lots of parts to Russia but saying they’re not supporting them.
“I doubt whether North Korea would be capable of delivering at the kind of scale Russia is after.
“We know that North Korea does the bidding of China more often than not, and maybe this is a way of China being able to get equipment to Russia with deniability.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un departs Pyongyang, North Korea, to visit RussiaREUTERS“I suspect this is the reality, while North Korea gets the fuel and all the rest of it to stave off the starvation of their people.”
It comes as the US State Department warned that it is “troubling” to see Russia holding talks with North Korea on programs that could violate UN Security Council resolutions.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said: “When you see what looks to be increased cooperation and probably military transfers, that is quite troubling and would potentially be in violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed the talks were “important and substantive”, claiming North Korea are interested in cooperation with Russia in the areas of aviation and transport.
Downing Street claimed the meeting is indicative of Putin’s isolation on the world stage.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We urge DPRK (North Korea) to cease its arms negotiations with Russia and to abide by public commitments Pyongyang has made not to sell arms to Russia.
“This visit serves to highlight Russia’s isolation on the global stage.
“And as the world unites against Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, he has been forced to turn to regimes such as North Korea for help.”
The spokesman said that Russia’s “negotiation of deals with significant quantities of weapons from the DPRK to be used against Ukraine violates UN Security Council resolutions, including resolutions, Russia itself voted for”.