"China's 'strategic patience' test due to strengthened military cooperation between North Korea and Russia"

China's strategic patience has been put to the test as North Korea continues to make provocations and seeks to strengthen military cooperation with Russia, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported.

The newspaper analyzed in interviews with domestic and foreign experts in China, saying, "China has faced an embarrassing situation with such a move by North Korea."

First of all, he pointed out that as North Korea escalates its hostility toward South Korea, a sense of crisis is rising on the Korean Peninsula ahead of the U.S. presidential election.

In the last two weeks, North Korea has revised its constitution to define South Korea as a hostile country, blasting roads between the two Koreas, and threatening a drone invasion.

On top of that, military closeness between North Korea and Russia is accelerating to the extent that North Korea has decided to send 12,000 troops to Russia.

"China is in an embarrassing position due to Pyongyang's repeated provocations," said Nir Hsiung, a professor at Shanghai Political Science University, a military expert. "This is because North Korea is getting closer to Russia against South Korea and the United States."

The Chinese Foreign Ministry urged all parties to "ease tensions" in response to South Korea's intelligence authorities' announcement the day before that North Korea had decided to send a large number of troops to Russia.