Russian President Vladimir Putin’s trip to Asia won him support to maintain his grinding war on Ukraine while alarming US allies such as South Korea, which is now considering supplying Kyiv with weapons that could change the battlefield. Putin returned to Russia after visits to North Korea and Vietnam that resulted in a military pact with Pyongyang that bound the two US adversaries even closer and raised the risks of military action on the Korean Peninsula. Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed Wednesday to come to each other’s defense if one is attacked. While it remains to be seen what the lasting impact of the visit will be, in the short term it will likely push Japan and South Korea to bolster their relationship and their bonds with the US, which have already become stronger over the past year. It also left China on the sidelines, an unusual position for North Korea’s biggest benefactor. Read more: -------- Subscribe to our YouTube channel: Subscribe to Bloomberg Originals: Bloomberg Quicktake brings you global social video spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. Connect with us on… YouTube: Breaking News on YouTube: @BloombergQuicktakeNow
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