Russia and South Korea both state on the same day: North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons may become an accepted reality for the international community.

Even South Korea is no longer taking it seriously—has the international community really shifted from "firm opposition" to "de facto acceptance" of North Korea's nuclear status?

On July 22, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov publicly stated after the ASEAN meeting that Russia would no longer support calls for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. His exact words were “no longer support”—the slogan of “denuclearization” that has been echoed for decades, Russia has now officially withdrawn its backing. He also revealed that during last week’s visit by North Korea’s Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui to Russia, Moscow had clearly expressed full support for Pyongyang’s path of strengthening its national defense capabilities.

On the same day (July 23), South Korea’s Minister of Unification, Jung Dong-young, announced that the Yoon Suk-yeol administration had effectively abandoned its previous stance of “denuclearization first,” as well as the principle of “complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization” (CVID), shifting instead toward a “peace-first” approach. Jung was direct: “If we make ‘denuclearization first’ a precondition for dialogue, then dialogue cannot even begin.” The new proposal is simple: if North Korea halts further expansion of its nuclear capabilities, South Korea will provide corresponding rewards.

One side stops shouting; the other stops prioritizing.

On one hand, an emerging military alliance between Russia and North Korea brings about mutual interests; on the other, South Korea’s change in government triggers a dramatic policy reversal. These two developments unfolded on the same day, pointing to the same conclusion: the international community is gradually shifting from “strong opposition” to “de facto acceptance” of North Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons.

Last year, the United States removed the phrase “complete denuclearization of North Korea” from its National Security Strategy. From “strategic patience,” to “maximum pressure,” and now to “accepting the status quo and managing risks”—America’s approach over the past decade-plus has led to the inevitable conclusion: it has come to admit that it simply cannot deal with North Korea.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1871581053839433/

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