Following a drastic increase in rail traffic between North Korea and Russia sighted via satellite images in North Korea’s Tungmangang Rail Facility as of October 5th, there have been suspicions of North Korea supplying Russia with arms. Beyond Parallel, an organization discussing Korean unification created by the CSIS, stated “the level of rail traffic is far greater than what [it] has observed at the [Tungmangang facility] during the past five years(Bermudez et al.).” The number of railcars captured in a satellite image on October 5 totaled a staggering 73, while past images show “approximately 20 railcars…at most(Bermudez et al.).” Soon after the suspicions, U.S. officials confirmed on October 13th that North Korea has supplied Russia with more than 1,000 containers of military resources. Furthermore, the White House revealed concerns that Russia may repay North Korea with “sophisticated weapons and technology it otherwise would not have available under international sanctions(Baker),” including fighter aircrafts and surface-to-air missiles.
The unprecedented increase may be a product of the recent summit between Kim Jong-Un and Vladimir Putin in an Eastern city of Russia on September 13th. According to Reuters, Kim visited the Vostochny Cosmodrome, an advanced spaceport, talked with Russian ministers, and “raised a toast with a glass of Russian wine to Putin’s health, to the victory of “great Russia” and to Korean-Russian friendship”(Faulconbridge & Choi).The contents of this meeting and its following effects blatantly reveal a cooperative connection between the two countries.
As a student who has been born and raised in South Korea, war between South and North Korea has always been a distant concept. Despite the countless history lessons at school that reminded me that the war isn’t over yet, as a child who wasn’t born to experience the conflict North Korea felt like a scarecrow—unreal. But reading of an arms supply between North Korea and Russia and seeing pictures of Kim Jong Un toasting to the health of Vladimir Putin all so blatantly makes me fear our future.
The diplomats and the politicians of this country should ensure the citizens of South Korea a future that does not demand our fear; the more threats that come through, the stronger they have to ensure us and show us that nothing will happen.
