Russia vetoes UN North Korea resolution.

[Santander]

Kim could just grant Russia basing rights in North Korea just as the US has for South Korea. It would decrease the chance of a US strike and give his regime a powerful protector, while being yet another geopolitical coup for Putin.

Russia already struggles to stay relevant in the Pacific - maintaining any sort of serious presence in North Korea is out of the question, especially because it is literally a politically indefensible country, unlike many of the Middle Eastern and South American countries that are Russia-friendly.

[Santander]

Also all these sanctions are useless as long as China doesn't follow it

Haven't China just recently sent a transport of NK coal back?

Who knows. Formally yes, but in the same time we have seen chinese trucks at DPRK military parade - formally China can't sell it to Kim regime.

This is a good point. The Dandong border crossing is known for extremely lenient customs enforcement, and the Chinese are perfectly willing to engage in import/export trickery like when they bought the Varyag from Ukraine through a Macanese shell company under the cover of turning into a floating casino. They're clever - if they want to get around the sanctions while going through the motions for political purposes, they can, and they will.