North Korea “so fervently” supports Russia in the war against Ukraine because its regime relies on ideological and political dependence on Moscow, says well-known Ukrainian journalist, political analyst, and commentator Vitaly Portnikov, as reported by Krym.Realii.
“If we look at the history of North Korea realistically, we see that the DPRK is essentially no different from the ‘DPR’ or ‘LPR’ (terrorist pro-Russian groups controlling parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine – ed),” the article states.
The DPRK was established by Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin on the territory of the Korean Peninsula occupied by the Red Army.
“Moreover, Stalin did not even trust Korean communists to govern the DPRK. Their leader, Kim Tu-bong, became one of the subordinates of Soviet officer Kim Il-sung, who headed the party and the country,” Portnikov writes.
In the early decades of the DPRK’s existence – especially after Pyongyang failed to establish control over the entire Korean Peninsula – the Kim dynasty was viewed with overt irony, even contempt, the journalist notes.
“The DPRK was considered a fake state not only by Western leaders. Let me remind you that Donald Trump was the first sitting U.S. president to meet with the leader of North Korea,” Portnikov adds.
Even within the Soviet Union, the DPRK was not taken seriously, he says. Stalin used the residents of North Korea as “cannon fodder” in his confrontation with the U.S.
Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev, Leonid Brezhnev, and Mikhail Gorbachev openly neglected North Korea.
“In contrast, [Kremlin leader Vladimir] Putin today buys shells from Kim, while Kim threatens neighboring countries with nuclear bombardment,” Portnikov said.
All of this once again underscores how dangerous it is to underestimate quasi-states created by totalitarian regimes to destabilize situations.
“Like some Frankenstein, political fiction begins to live its own life and generate new conflicts,” the journalist writes.
Cover: Reuters
