North Korean Ambassador to Russia Sin Hong-chol (right) and Bella Cherkesova, Russia’s deputy minister of digital development, communications and mass media, pose for a photo at the North Korean Embassy in Moscow on Tuesday, after signing a pact on cooperation in the public relations divisions of the two countries. (Russian Embassy in Pyongyang) Russia and North Korea signed two parallel agreements this week on media and public information cooperation, extending their deepening strategic alignment and signaling tighter coordination in their external and public communications.
The Committee on Public Information, North Korea’s state publicity and media-oversight organ, and Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media inked an agreement on cooperation in mass media and public information, North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported Thursday. The signing ceremony took place on Tuesday at the North Korean Embassy in Moscow.
“The agreement opens new prospects for expanding the partnership between Russia and the DPRK, creating a foundation for deepened and mutually beneficial cooperation,” the Russian Embassy in North Korea said in a statement on Wednesday. The DPRK stands for the official name of North Korea, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
According to the embassy, the document outlines the key areas of joint work, including the exchange of information between state and private information services and ensuring cooperation in the field of mass media.
The cooperation accord also covers the coordination and exchange of each other’s broadcast content, the sharing of publications and other materials, and other forms of interaction aimed at strengthening information ties between the two countries, the embassy added.
“The signing of the Agreement became an important step on the path toward developing friendship and partnership in the media sphere and reflects the aspiration of both countries toward effective and constructive cooperation,” the embassy said in the statement.
The signing ceremony was attended by Bella Cherkesova, Russia’s deputy minister of digital development, communications and mass media, and North Korean Ambassador to Russia Shin Hong-chol.
The signing of the agreement follows a Russian government order issued in July, which approved the mass media ministry’s proposal — coordinated with the Russian Foreign Ministry — to hold negotiations on concluding a cooperation agreement with the North Korean committee in the field of mass media.
On the same day, Russia’s state-run media group Rossiya Segodnya and North Korea’s state-run KCNA signed a cooperation agreement in Pyongyang, according to a statement provided by Rossiya Segodnya.
US-sanctioned Rossiya Segodnya’s key media brands include the domestic wire service RIA Novosti, the global news agency Sputnik and the foreign media translator inosMI.
“The agreement provides for the exchange of information and the implementation of joint projects,” the statement read. “The sides agreed to carry out projects aimed at promoting objective and professional coverage in the mass media of processes in the cultural, humanitarian, economic and political spheres.”
The signing of the agreement came after KCNA reported on Tuesday that a Rossiya Segodnya delegation led by First Deputy Editor-in-Chief Sergei Kochetkov had arrived in Pyongyang on Monday.
The signing of the concurrent twin accords comes after Russia and North Korea agreed to “cooperate in the field of communications and publishing activities” in the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The treaty was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in June 2024 during Putin’s visit to Pyongyang.
Against the backdrop, the Russian Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media and North Korea’s Ministry of Information Technologies signed an agreement on cooperation in communication technologies and digital development in October 2024.
dagyumji@heraldcorp.com