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Russia is buying millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Korea to use in its invasion of Ukraine, according to newly downgraded U.S. intelligence.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Russian Defense Ministry’s turn to an isolated North Korea showed that “Russian forces continue to suffer from severe supply shortages in Ukraine, in part because of export controls and sanctions”.
U.S. intelligence officials believe the Russians may consider buying more North Korean military equipment in the future. The intelligence discovery was first reported by The New York Times.
The U.S. official did not elaborate on how much weapons Russia intends to buy from North Korea.
The discovery comes after the Biden administration recently confirmed that the Russian military received an Iranian-made drone for use in the Ukrainian battlefield in August.
The White House said last week that Russia had encountered technical problems with an Iranian-made drone it bought from Tehran in August for its incursion.
Russia collected the Mohajer-6 and Shahed series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) over several days last month, which the Biden administration said could be part of Russia’s plan to buy hundreds of Iranian drones for use in Ukraine.
North Korea has sought to strengthen ties with Russia as much of Europe and the West have withdrawn, blaming the U.S. for the Ukraine crisis and condemning the West’s “hegemonic policy” as a justification for Russia’s military action in Ukraine to protect itself.
North Korea has hinted at an interest in sending construction workers to help rebuild Russian-occupied territory in the east of the country.
North Korea’s ambassador to Moscow recently met envoys from two Russian-backed separatist territories in Ukraine’s Donbas region and expressed optimism about cooperation in the “field of labor migration”, citing North Korea’s loosening of pandemic border controls.
In July, North Korea became the only country other than Russia and Syria to recognize the territorial independence of Donetsk and Luhansk, further aligning itself with Russia over the conflict in Ukraine.
Pyongyang’s provocation comes at a time when Washington is increasingly concerned about North Korea’s accelerated development of nuclear weapons.
North Korea has tested more than 30 ballistic missiles this year, including its first intercontinental ballistic missile test since 2017, as leader Kim Jong Un pushes forward with its nuclear arsenal in defiance of U.S.-led pressure and sanctions.
In the midst of the bitter war in Ukraine, Washington has often downgraded and released intelligence findings to highlight Russia’s misinformation operations plan or draw attention to Moscow’s difficulties in prosecuting the war. Ukraine’s smaller army put up a stubborn resistance to the militarily dominant Russian army.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mr Kim have recently shared mutual trust, and they have both called for “comprehensive” and “strategic and tactical” cooperation between the two countries.
Moscow has issued a statement condemning the resumption of large-scale U.S.-South Korea military exercises this year, which North Korea sees as an invasion exercise.
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