- North Korea has become the first country in the world to recognise the independence of two separatist territories in eastern Ukraine.
- Ukraine has cut diplomatic and political ties with North Korea because of international sanctions imposed on the country for its nuclear weapons programme.
- The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has criticised Pyongyang for its actions.
North Korea is one of the few governments in the world to recognise the independence of two separatist territories in eastern Ukraine. It did this to help Russia fight against its neighbour.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry cut ties with North Korea and criticised Pyongyang for its actions, which they saw as an attack on Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity.
North Korea has repeatedly blamed the United States for the Ukraine crisis, arguing that the West’s “hegemonic policy” justifies Russia’s offensive in Ukraine as a defensive measure.
Thursday, North Korea’s state media said that Foreign Minister Choe Sun Hui wrote letters to the governments of Donetsk and Luhansk on Wednesday to say that the North recognises their independence and wants to build diplomatic ties with them.
On Wednesday, the separatist leader of Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, recognised North Korea’s decision.
Luhansk and Donetsk are both in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. This is a mostly Russian-speaking area with steel mills, mines, and other industries.
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Parts of both provinces have been controlled by separatists since 2014, but Russian President Vladimir Putin didn’t recognise their independence until just before the February attack.
Syria has since acknowledged their independence.
Dmytro Kuleba, the foreign minister of Ukraine, stated that Russia’s request for support from N.Korea demonstrates that Moscow has “no more allies in the world, except for countries that depend on it financially and politically.”
Because of international sanctions imposed on North Korea for its nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles programme, Ukraine had already ceased its political and economic relations with North Korea.
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