Thank you, Chairs and good afternoon colleagues. Thank you for
the opportunity to debate the important topic of involvement by
the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in Russia's
illegal war of aggression.
Chairs, Russia's illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been
ongoing for nearly 1,000 days. This regrettable landmark is a
damning indictment of the hubris with which President Putin
initiated his war against Ukraine, which he thought he would win
within days. But more importantly it is also a testament to
the bravery and fortitude that the people of Ukraine have
demonstrated in defending against this violent, illegal and
unprovoked invasion of their internationally recognised sovereign
territory.
The tragic effects of this war on the population of Ukraine are
well-documented, and the UK will continue to ensure that those
responsible are brought to justice. President Putin's war of
choice has also taken a massive toll upon his own country, with
profound inflationary effects on the Russian economy, and
devastating losses in material and manpower incurred by the
Russian military. With those killed and wounded now upwards of
650,000, and Russia finding it ever harder to find people willing
to be sent to their deaths in Ukraine, the Russian military has
turned to Pyongyang to bolster its combat capability.
This concerning development has significant implications, first
and foremost, for the war in Ukraine but also for Europe, the
Korean Peninsula, the Indo-Pacific region and the wider world.
DPRK is already providing significant support to Russia's
full-scale invasion against Ukraine through the supply of
munitions, arms and other materiel - the provision of which is in
direct violation of multiple United Nations Security Council
resolutions. Resolutions that Russia itself supported.
Russia's training and deployment of DPRK troops into the combat
zone with Ukraine, is a significant step further for both
countries, which exposes the growing reliance of the Russian
military upon third country support. The DPRK will exact a
heavy price for such support, likely to include military
assistance and access to additional technical and military
insights. Such access to improved military technology, and
enhanced capacity to export weapons, could fuel instability in
the Korean peninsula and vulnerable conflict areas around the
world.
When the DPRK Foreign Minister Choi Son-hui and Russian Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov met on 2 Nov, Son-hui stated that ‘Kim
Jong-Un gave instructions that we, without looking back at
anyone, should invariably and powerfully support and provide
assistance to the Russian army and the Russian people in their
holy war.' Chairs, there is nothing holy about this war. It
is simply an illegal war; a war Russia has the choice to
end. The UK remains determined in our resolve to support
Ukraine in line with the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act to
protect its people, defend its sovereignty, and emerge from this
war as a strong and secure nation able to deter itself against
future threats. Thank you, Chairs.
