 "First Sports: Russia sign new sporting deal with North Korea, but is that a concern for rest of the world?")
The sports ministers of North Korea and Russia met in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang on Sunday (24 November), where the two parties discussed how the sporting sectors of the two countries could be developed. According to North Korean state media outlet KCNA, Mikhail Degtyarev, Russia’s Minister of Sport and Kim Il Guk, North Korea’s Minister of Sport, signed a protocol for sports exchanges in 2025.
This comes at a time when Russia have been barred from major global sporting events ever since the country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. North Korea, on the other hand, has remained reclusive as far as sporting events are concerned, barring the major events like the Olympics.
This situation bring the question as to if Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un are using diplomatic ties to strengthen the two countries’ sporting culture. Putin’s visit to North Korea earlier in 2024 had confirmed the strengthening ties between the two countries. It wasn’t long until these two countries strengthened their interest in the sporting world too. Recently, a Russian delegation even visited stadiums in North Korea and also witnessed a Taekwondo demonstration.
Russian Sports Minister promises Russian-Korean Summer Games
While details of the protocol has not been announced yet, Russian Sports Minister has promised of a Russian-Korean Summer Games that will be held on a biennial basis. Ever since the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and FIFA banned Russia, the country’s football teams have been forced to play matches against lower-ranked sides. Not to forget, Russia had hosted the Winter Olympics in 2014 as well as the FIFA World Cup in 2018. The biennial Summer Games is just one step in Vladmir Putin’s plans in his bid to revive the sporting scene in Russia.
The Russia-North Korea pact could also impact the rest of the world. The strategic partnership treaty that Russia and North Korea have signed have put both South Korea and United States of America on alert. North Korea have even sent military equipment and over 10,000 troops to the Russian border to help in their war against Ukraine. South Korea, however, feels that multiple sanctions that the United Nations Security Council imposed have been breached by North Korea. “We call for compliance with UNSC resolutions and once again urge an immediate halt to any illegal exchanges,” South Korea’s Unification Ministry said.
While the rest of the world will be vary of the sporting ties between Russia and North Korea, these two countries will only benefit from the partnership. While Russia has been barred from a majority of sporting bodies, North Korea has been in hibernation for a while. However, that could change for both the countries as far as their sporting aspirations are concerned.
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