North Korea has reportedly ratified a treaty to establish a strategic partnership with Russia that includes a defense provision.

The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said Tuesday that the treaty was ratified as a decree of the president of the state affairs of North Korea, which refers to Kim Jong-un.

The KCNA said the North’s head of state signed the decree on Monday and that the treaty will take effect when both sides exchange ratification instruments. 

The accord, signed by Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin in June after their summit in Pyongyang, includes a mutual defense clause under which the two countries will provide military support to each other if either one comes under attack.

Putin signed the treaty into law on Saturday.