President Vladimir Putin signed a military partnership deal with North Korea and visited U.S. business partner Vietnam this week in an effort to intimidate Ukraine’s Western allies and show that he is not as isolated on the world stage as they would like. Putin, who is on the International Criminal Court’s wanted list, has repeatedly voiced outrage at the West for authorizing Ukraine to use long-range weapons to strike Russian territory, its supply of fighter jets to Kyiv and its general refusal to make concessions to the Kremlin. “Didn’t the chief [Putin] promise an asymmetrical response for …