Pacific threatened by cooperation between China, North Korea and Russia says US commander

The top US military leader in the Pacific, Admiral Samuel Paparo, has issued a stark warning to senators about the growing security risks in the Indo-Pacific region posed by the deepening military cooperation between China, North Korea and Russia.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Paparo said China has supplied Russia with roughly 70% of its machine tools and 90% of its legacy semiconductors, helping Moscow rebuild its defense capabilities amid its ongoing war in Ukraine. 

In return, he noted, Russia is likely sharing sensitive military technologies with China - potentially including advances that could make Chinese submarines quieter and more difficult to detect.

“Russia's growing military cooperation with China adds another layer of complexity, creating a compounded challenge with the deepening cooperation among China, Russia, and North Korea,” Paparo warned. 

It follows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s warning last week that Russia is actively recruiting Chinese citizens to fight alongside its forces in the Ukraine war. He said more than 150 such mercenaries are already active in the battle with Beijing’s knowledge.

China has called these accusations “irresponsible.”

Paparo went on to discuss the development of advanced nuclear weapons in North Korea, stating “ballistic missiles pose a direct threat to our homeland and our allies” and highlighting the country’s similar ties with Russia.

He told the committee that North Korea is sending “thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of artillery shells” and hundreds of short-range missiles to Russia. The expectation, he said, is that Pyongyang will get air defense and surface-to-air missile support.

According to the South Korean military, North Korea has also deployed thousands of troops to support Russian forces in the war against Ukraine, along with hundreds of self-propelled howitzers and rocket launchers.

Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the committee, voiced concerns that some fear President Donald Trump may reduce the US military footprint in Korea and Japan, scale back joint military exercises with both allies, and pull back on plans for the Joint Force Headquarters in Japan. Such moves, Reed warned, could undermine global confidence in America’s reliability and long-term commitment.

Reed also raised concerns about recent Pentagon decisions to redeploy an aircraft carrier and a Patriot missile battalion from the Pacific to the Middle East, questioning whether these shifts have weakened military readiness in the Indo-Pacific.

In response, Admiral Paparo emphasised his duty to keep both the defence secretary and the president informed, stressing the importance of staying alert to any scenario in which those forces might need to return to the Pacific quickly, should a more urgent threat emerge in the region.