Seoul, 12 November 2024 (dpa/MIA) - North Korea has signed off an a treaty with Russia calling for a "comprehensive strategic partnership," Pyongyang's state-controlled news agency KCNA reported on Tuesday.

It comes as North Korean troops are in Russia fighting against Ukraine, according to Ukrainian and other military sources.

In a statement, KCNA said North Korea signed the treaty, which was concluded on June 19 in Pyongyang, on Monday. It will take effect once both sides exchange their ratification documents, the agency said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on the agreement on Saturday, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reported, citing Russia's TASS news agency.

Moscow's lower house of parliament or Duma okayed the treaty on October 24. The agreement takes the military cooperation between the two countries to a new level and stipulates that they will provide mutual assistance should either country be attacked.

It was signed by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in June, but had to then be approved by the Duma and signed by the countries' leaders.