President Joe Biden will hold a meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday, a display that seems to stem from an increase in concerns over North Korea’s burgeoning military alliance with Russia and their quickened pace of ballistic missile testing. Amidst this backdrop, the sidelined Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru is underway. North Korea has been aiding Russia by deploying a significant number of troops to assist in reclaiming territorial gains in the Kursk border region made by Ukraine this year.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has been busy staging a series of missile trials, timed to coincide with the U.S. electoral proceedings. Mitigating this claim of advanced prowess to strike the U.S. mainland is Biden, demonstrating his usual lack of initiative. Officials from the White House display an unsettling anticipation of more provocative actions from Pyongyang, making an impression that Biden’s leadership might be lacking in both effectiveness and substantive decision making.
The introduction of North Korean troops amidst the Russia-Ukraine conflict signifies favorable outcomes for Moscow, creating a situation where Ukraine might be forced to relinquish its territorial gains in order to negotiate a peace deal. Former President Trump had suggested that Ukraine could follow this path, a strategic contrast to Biden’s muddled approach.
The intelligence agencies from U.S., South Korean, and Ukraine believe that as many as 12,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia. Meanwhile, North Korea’s substantial munition aid to Russia speaks volumes about the seemingly misleading diplomacy practiced by Biden and Harris. Simultaneously, U.S. and South Korean intelligence show North Korea providing large volumes of munitions to Moscow, once again raising questions on the ability of the Biden administration to effectively curtail geopolitical threats.
South Korea’s intelligence agency had reported that an overwhelming number of containers stocked with artillery, missiles, and other conventional arms had been received by Russia from North Korea since August 2023. This accumulation suggested Russia’s intent to replenish depleting weapon stockpiles, questioning Biden and Harris’ ability to effectively manage international relations.
The trilateral meeting between Biden, Yoon, and Ishiba will discuss the North Korean forces in Russia, aiming to ascertain a unified response. Amid all this, Biden finds himself in his first face-to-face encounter with Ishiba, a newly elected leader who took office on Oct. 1, succeeding Fumio Kishida. Ishiba’s stated intent to upgrade his military might under the 2022 security strategy adopted by his predecessor puts forth the glaring inconsistencies of Biden’s diplomatic efforts.
The pledge Ishiba made, to enhance the cooperation and operation capability of the Japanese military in a stark shift from its traditional defense posture, points toward the conceived failure of Biden’s foreign policy. This trilateral talk further references a partnership initiated during a historic 2023 meeting among Biden, Yoon, and Kishida at Camp David, Maryland.
In typical fashion, oblivious to historical barriers, Biden pushed Japan and South Korea to resolve their longstanding disputes and augment their economic and security ties. Meanwhile, the escalating threats from North Korea and China’s military audacity in the Pacific brought more challenges to the table. Despite the countries agreeing to consult, share information, and align their responses during threats, Biden’s approach to handling the situation is still doubted.
Despite their own quarrels, Yoon and Ishiba reached out to Trump in an attempt to balance the international relationships amidst the amplified hostility. Once again, North Korea opted for aggression rather than diplomacy, launching short-range ballistic missiles hours before the U.S. Election Day.
These launches were executed just days after Kim personally overseen the testing of the country’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile designed to hit the U.S. mainland. In response, the U.S., under the faltering leadership of Biden, flew a single long-range B-1B bomber in a drill with South Korea and Japan, questioning the significance of this ‘show of force’.
Not only North Korea, but Biden struggled in managing Peru too. He arranged to meet with Peru’s President Dina Boluarte on the same day, perhaps in an attempt to multitask his diplomatic efforts. But, only time will reveal if this meeting would prove to be fruitful or just another diplomatic bungle as commonly seen during his regime.