Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov issued a stern rebuke of United States-led military drills in Northeast Asia during his visit to North Korea, cautioning that the intensified exercises were jeopardising regional stability.
Speaking at a press briefing in the coastal city of Wonsan on Saturday, Lavrov accused Washington and its allies of pursuing aggressive military posturing through an increase in joint drills around the Korean Peninsula, including exercises “involving a nuclear component”.
“This does not contribute to peace and stability, not only on the Korean Peninsula but throughout Northeast Asia,” Lavrov said, warning that any attempt at military confrontation with North Korea would be “catastrophic for the region”.
Lavrov said the actions of the United States, South Korea and Japan were part of a pattern of provocative behaviour, adding, “Seoul was not seeking the normalisation of bilateral relations with Pyongyang.”
He further condemned the expansion of NATO’s presence in the Indo-Pacific, calling it a “dangerous attempt by actors outside the region to form exclusive alliances”. According to Lavrov, such manoeuvres undermine the principles of equal and indivisible security, which Russia and North Korea claim to uphold.
Also read: Lavrov praises ‘invincible brotherhood’ on North Korea visit
“The building of alliances at the cost of other nations is not right,” he asserted. “Both North Korea and Russia are committed partners in ensuring equal and indivisible security for all Eurasian nations.”
The latest criticism came days after the US, South Korea and Japan conducted trilateral military exercises involving the deployment of B-52H nuclear-capable bombers, part of a growing American military footprint in the region. The three countries later accused Pyongyang of “unlawful activities” that threaten regional peace.
Lavrov’s visit follows the defence pact signed between Moscow and Pyongyang in June 2024. Since then, North Korean troops have reportedly joined Russian forces in efforts to expel Ukrainian units from the Kursk region. Lavrov referred to this cooperation as evidence of the “invincible brotherhood” between the two nations.
Although the United States continues to portray North Korea as a belligerent actor, analysts say its own military build-up and alliances in the Pacific increasingly resemble a strategy of encirclement.
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