North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump are holding a series of meetings today in Hanoi in a historic second summit with lofty hopes of denuclearising the Korean peninsula.

Key points: China is probably North Korea's biggest ally, but Egypt and Mongolia are also on the side of the rogue state

China is probably North Korea's biggest ally, but Egypt and Mongolia are also on the side of the rogue state Relations are based on "ideological grounds or because they share common enemies", or militarisation

Relations are based on "ideological grounds or because they share common enemies", or militarisation But as North Korea tries to shed its pariah status, "relations could be an advantage"

But while the US has plenty of backing for its mission, who has Mr Kim got lined up in North Korea's corner?

The list of nations who have friendly relations with the pariah state is as eclectic as some of the stories that have trickled out about the Supreme Leader.

Here's a look at some of the allies Pyongyang has on its side.

The big guns: China, Russia

China is the biggest and best-known of North Korea's backers.

Beijing has the distinction of having the only bilateral security treaty with Pyongyang, meaning that each country would come to the aid of the other if it was under attack.

This makes China "by far and away the most important country to North Korea", said Euan Graham, executive director of La Trobe University's Asia department.

Mr Kim, pictured with his wife Ri Sol Ju, has made several official visits to China since taking office. ( AP/Korea News Service )

Moscow ranks "a close second", due in large part to sharing a border with North Korea and the legacy of the Cold War.

But though it remains a trading partner, Dr Graham said that "Russia is a shadow of what the Soviet Union was, and it doesn't provide aid or subsidies to North Korea anymore".

"All that dried up instantly when the Soviet Union ceased to exist."

China is now North Korea's main economic lifeline, but their relationship has been "pretty rocky in the past few years", according to Tessa Morris-Suzuki, a professor with Australian National University's College of Asia and the Pacific.

Cold War hangovers: Bulgaria, Cuba

North Korea maintains diplomatic relations with a surprising number of countries — 164 in total — 25 of which have embassies in Pyongyang, including the United Kingdom and Sweden.

Other European nations, despite US and EU sanctions, have also kept up diplomatic relations. Bulgaria has been seen as the state's chief ally in Europe.

The flag of North Korea flutters in front of its embassy in Rome. ( Reuters: Alessandro Bianchi )

But many of the closer relationships, such as the "residual links" between North Korea and Cuba, can be traced back to the Cold War era, according to Dr Graham.

And despite modern-day differences, the two countries have maintained longstanding ties based on their shared socialist past.

"When I've been to North Korea I've met North Koreans who've been to Cuba for education and training," said Professor Morris-Suzuki, who last visited in 2012.

Rogue states and military might: Egypt, Pakistan, Iran

North Korea has collected many of its friends based on "ideological grounds or because they share common enemies", according to Dr Graham.

In 2002, former US president George W Bush drew a connection between North Korea, Iran and Iraq in proclaiming them his "Axis of Evil".

Linked by their anti-Western sentiment and twin desire to develop nuclear capabilities, North Korea has sold arms to Iran in the past while oil flowed in the opposite direction.

Egypt and Pakistan have likewise fostered close relations with North Korea dating back to the 1970s, based largely on a sanctions-defying trade in weaponry.

And a host of African nations — Ethiopia, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Zimbabwe among them — have either accepted military training from Pyongyang or illegally bought North Korean arms.

East Asia's wannabe Switzerland: Mongolia

Mongolia stands out for boasting longstanding warm relations with both the North Korean dictatorship and South Korea's democratic government.

Geographically close to both countries, landlocked Mongolia now positions itself as a neutral party that could potentially step in to play peacemaker.

"There was some discussion of Kim Jong-un meeting Donald Trump in Ulaanbaatar, which could have been an option," said Dr Morris-Suzuki.

While that didn't go ahead, Mongolia "tends to see itself as potentially being the Switzerland of East Asia" and hopes to stay friends with both sides.

Loading

South-East Asian sweethearts: Vietnam, Singapore

The choice of Singapore and Hanoi for the two summits was no accident.

In the case of Singapore, the wealthy but tiny city-state takes a similar tack to Mongolia by striving to keep all players on side.

Meanwhile Vietnam shares with North Korea the bond of fighting a divisive north-south war as well as being a single-party state, according to Dr Graham.

Loading

Mr Trump is among those who have been touting Vietnam as a potential model for North Korea's future.

And with many observers hopeful that Mr Kim will indeed open up his country in time, Dr Graham said governments with ties to Pyongyang are unlikely to suffer the consequences that come with defying the US.

"The fact that North Korea has been able to have a second meeting with the US, it's a very different environment. Pursuing relations with North Korea could be an advantage … when previously it would have been a disadvantage."

Dr Morris-Suzuki said that raises the question of whether Australia — which has a diplomatic relationship with North Korea despite also technically being at war — will eventually pursue closer ties.

"Over the years both sides have just allowed [the relationship] to lapse," she said. "But there is, strictly speaking, still a diplomatic relationship and it will be interesting to see what happens with that if things change."

Loading...