North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un sent a celebratory message to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Monday to mark the latter’s birthday, declaring Putin his “closest comrade.”
The effusive letter, published on North Korean state media, praised the “eternal foundation” of North Korea’s relationship with Russia and expressed hope in the deepening of ties between Pyongyang and Moscow. The warm tone of the missive presented a notable contrast to a message Kim sent the day before to Chinese communist dictator Xi Jinping, which belatedly marked the 75th anniversary of the fall of China to communism, omitting any personal praise for Xi.
China has historically been North Korea’s closest ally, a fellow warring party in the technically still-ongoing Korean War and fellow communist nation. In the past year, however, Putin has endeavored to bring Pyongyang closer into Russia’s orbit, going so far as to signing a mutual defense treaty with Kim in June. The defense treaty followed months of rumors that North Korea was providing Russia material aid in its ongoing colonization campaign against Ukraine.
“Meetings and comradely ties between us to be continued in the future will make a positive contribution,” Kim said in his message to Putin, as published by the flagship state outlet the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), “to further consolidating the eternal foundation of the DPRK-Russia friendship and strategic and cooperative relations.”
“DPRK” is short for “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” North Korea’s name for itself.
Kim claimed he recalled Putin’s visit to Pyongyang in June, in which they signed the mutual defense treaty, with “deep emotion,” calling the current status of bilateral ties “invincible alliance relations and eternal strategic relations.”
“Availing myself of this opportunity, I reaffirm our full and disinterested support and solidarity with the just cause of the army and people of Russia,” the letter continued, an apparent reference to Russia’s ongoing invasion and colonization of Ukraine, which Kyiv has accused North Korea of participating in.
The letter refers to Putin as Kim’s “closest comrade” twice, at the beginning and end.
On October 6, a day before Putin’s birthday, Kim sent a much colder message to Xi Jinping similarly marking a celebratory occasion: the birthday of communist China. Notably, China observes its “national day” on October 1, making Kim’s message almost a week late. October 6 does mark, however, the anniversary of North Korea and China establishing diplomatic ties.
“I extend warm greetings to you, Comrade General Secretary [Xi] and, through you, to the Communist Party of China, the government of the People’s Republic of China and all the Chinese people,” Kim wrote, according to KCNA, “on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the DPRK and the PRC.”
“Over the past 75 years, the two parties and the two countries have vigorously advanced along the road of socialism, standing all sorts of trials and challenges of history with the firm faith in the validity of their cause,” he continued, “We hope that the Chinese people will achieve steady and fresh successes in the course of building a modern socialist country on a full scale under the leadership of the Communist Party of China with you as its core.”
The message focused on the diplomatic relationship between the two countries, rather than the personal ties between Xi and Kim.
Radio Free Asia (RFA) noted on Monday that the China National Day message was “less effusive and shorter than the past,” omitting reference to Xi as Kim’s “esteemed comrade.” The message also appeared deep inside the North Korean state newspaper Rodong Sinmun, rather than on the front page as it has in previous years.
Xi sent a message to Kim in mid-September on the similar occasion of North Korea’s founding anniversary, which observers also deemed unusually cold. According to the version published by KCNA,
Xi promised to “continue to view and deal with the China-DPRK [North Korea] relations at a strategic level and from a long-term angle,” KCNA reported, “and is ready to provide the peoples of the two countries with more welfare and make greater contribution to peace, stability, development and prosperity.”
Notably, Xi’s message expressed hope that China and North Korea would improve “strategic communication,” suggesting some tensions between the countries.
The South Korean news service Yonhap, like RFA this weekend, described Pyongyang and Beijing as “relatively estranged” for some time, and struggling to keep the frayed relationship from becoming too public. While ideologically entirely aligned and supporting each other’s causes, Xi and Kim have at times struggled to keep private disagreements from spilling out into the public eye and many experts have suggested that China is uncomfortable with North Korea’s improving relations with Russia.
North Korea has for decades held China aloft as its closest partner. Following the end of its Wuhan coronavirus pandemic lockdowns, however, Pyongyang sent simultaneously invites to Chinese and Russian officials to become the first to visit the country since, for an event in June 2023.
In September of that year, Kim made a rare international trip to eastern Russia focused on sharing military technology and mutual support for each other’s causes. The visit featured Kim offering vocal support for the Ukraine invasion; in return, Russia personally gifted Kim suicide drones, potentially violating United Nations sanctions on North Korea.
A little less than a year later, North Korea claimed to debut its first indigenous fleet of suicide drones.
Putin’s visit to Pyongyang in June, the first in over two decades for him, appeared to elevate Russia to the status of North Korea’s closest partner.
The mutual defense treaty restored their relations to Soviet-era commitments. Both Russian and North Korean propaganda outlets claimed the two spent a significant amount of private time together and the Kim went above and beyond to grant Putin a warm welcome, including decorating the heart of Pyongyang, its Kim Il-sung Square, with a massive photo of the Russian strongman.
Shortly after Putin’s brief visit, The South China Morning Post reported that, “two weeks after Putin’ visit, North Korea switched transmission of its state television broadcasts from a Chinese satellite to a Russian one.” The move indicated that North Korea’s improving ties to Russia were at China’s expense.
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