Putin, Xi pledge to deepen ties, urge other nations to drop sanctions against N. Korea

Leaders of Russia and China have met in Moscow seeking a deeper partnership, apparently with the United States in mind.

Their agenda also covered urging the international community to abandon sanctions on North Korea.

Our Choi Soo-hyung has more.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Moscow on Thursday, local time, and signed a joint statement where they pledged to strengthen cooperation in all areas, including military ties.

During their talks in the Kremlin, the two leaders cast themselves as "defenders of a new world order no longer dominated by the U.S.," amid growing pressure from the West.

"Our common heroic past and combat brotherhood are a reliable foundation for the development and strengthening of Russian-Chinese relations. And these relations have reached the highest level in history."

The two sides also addressed global issues, including those related to North Korea.

They called on other countries to drop sanctions against Pyongyang, while saying issues on the Korean Peninsula must be resolved "only through diplomatic means."

" China and Russia will continue to stand together, firmly safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core, and international order based on international law, and continue to promote an equal and orderly multi-polar world."

One expert suggested the reason Russia and China are backing North Korea could be because of the North's role in countering threats from the West.

"I can only speculate that North Korea is playing an important role in this anti-Western strategy. In the immediate circumstances, it's providing weaponry, it's providing artillery, it's providing soldiers, and, of course, it's testing these short-range missiles for export, for use in other battlefields as well. So it may be that North Korea is simply 'useful' in this respect for both the great powers China and Russia."

Xi and other world leaders attended the annual Victory Day military parade in Moscow on Friday, to mark the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War Two.

This was the first time in 10 years for the Chinese leader to attend the event.

At the parade Putin also met with a North Korean military delegation and Sin Hong-chol, the North's ambassador to Russia, saying Russia supports those participating in the "special military operation" in Ukraine.

The South Korean government earlier said it had received an invitation from Russia, but decided not to attend.

This is likely because sending a senior official to the parade showcasing Russia's military capabilities could in itself send the wrong signal, especially at a time when Pyongyang and Moscow have been continuing arms cooperation, which is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Choi Soo-hyung, Arirang News.