North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, left, shakes hands with Russian Ambassador to North Korea Aleksandr Matsegora as the envoy sees her off at an airport in Pyongyang, Sept. 16, on her way to attend the Eurasian Women's Forum which was held Sept. 18 to 20 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Captured from Russian Embassy in North Korea Telegram

North Korea appears to be stepping up efforts to join the BRICS bloc, a multinational group led by Russia and China, with its top diplomat notably skipping the U.N. General Assembly in favor of attending a BRICS-related event.

However, experts said Tuesday that North Korea's membership remains unlikely, as the isolated regime's desire to join may not gain the consent of all BRICS member states.

Choe Son-hui, North Korea's foreign minister, returned from Russia after attending the Eurasian Women's Forum in Saint Petersburg from Sept. 18 to 20, according to the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang. The triennial event included the BRICS Women's Forum and other BRICS-related meetings.

Choe was notably absent from the U.N. General Assembly, currently underway in New York, as South Korean intelligence and observers had initially speculated that she might attend.

Her decision to participate in the BRICS event reflects North Korea's growing alignment with the Russian-led global order, according to South Korea's Ministry of Unification.

"Although we have not witnessed any decisive moves so far, North Korea's Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui recently attended an international event led by Russia, and the regime has been issuing official statements opposing the United States. Such actions suggest that North Korea likely intends to actively cooperate with the new global order being spearheaded by Russia in the future," a ministry official said Tuesday.

In June, a North Korean delegation led by Vice Sports Minister Kim Yong-gwon attended a BRICS Plus meeting in Kazan, Russia, held alongside the multisport competition BRICS Games.

Later that month, the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) published an article endorsing BRICS and its potential expansion, which, according to the report, could challenge the dominance of the U.S. dollar. The article, written by North Korean analyst Jong Il-hyon, criticized the U.S. for leveraging its military power and the dollar to assert global hegemony.

Cho Han-bum, a senior researcher at the state-run Korea Institute for National Unification, said these moves reflect North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's broader strategy of fostering a new Cold War dynamic.

"Aligning with BRICS fits Kim Jong-un's efforts to escape diplomatic isolation by positioning North Korea as an active member within emerging global alliances. North Korea seems to be laying the groundwork to make a formal application," Cho said.

Also, discussions within BRICS about introducing a new currency to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar could be appealing to North Korea, as it might help the regime evade economic sanctions.

A meeting of BRICS and BRICS Plus high-level security officials takes place in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Sept. 11. AP-Yonhap

BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, expanded its membership at the 2023 Johannesburg summit by accepting Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

This rare expansion seems to have encouraged North Korea to ramp up its efforts, especially given its growing ties with Russia.

However, Cho said Pyongyang's economic size and international standing make its BRICS membership unlikely.

"North Korea lags far behind other members in terms of economic strength and population size. Furthermore, the regime's international sanctions and rogue state status would make it difficult for BRICS members to agree on its inclusion unanimously," the researcher commented.

"Being too close to North Korea risks severing relations with the U.S. and European countries, which may not be a big issue for Russia, but it's a stance not all BRICS members are likely to embrace."

Lim Eul-chul, a North Korea expert at Kyungnam University's Far Eastern Institute, highlighted North Korea's relationship with China as a key factor influencing its potential membership in anti-U.S. blocs.

"While I wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of North Korea joining BRICS or the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in the future, it's unlikely to happen anytime soon. China's influence is pivotal in these decisions, but relations between Beijing and Pyongyang are currently strained," Lim said.

Should North Korea eventually join the Russian-led multilateral grouping, this would further cement BRICS as an anti-Western bloc, the professor said.

However, he suggested that such a scenario might not be entirely negative.

"If North Korea joins a formal multinational group, it could potentially alter its decades-long isolation and lead to more international engagement. In doing so, the regime might even begin to behave more responsibly like a normal state, so to speak," he said.