Ukraine war
USA: North Korea supplied weapons to Moscow for war
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (l.) during a visit in September next to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu at Vladivostok International Airport. photo
© Uncredited/kcna/dpa
The United States and allies have long warned that North Korea could supply weapons and military equipment to Russia. Now the US government is certain: weapons were shipped.
North Korea is likely to rely primarily on missiles, armored vehicles and equipment for the production of ballistic missiles, said Kirby. “We are closely monitoring whether Moscow will provide these materials to Pyongyang.” It has already been observed that Russian ships have unloaded containers in North Korea. This could possibly represent the first deliveries of material from Russia. But that is not guaranteed, explained Kirby.
In the past, the USA and allies such as South Korea had repeatedly warned the two countries against military cooperation and expressed concern about possible arms deals. Any arms trade between Moscow and Pyongyang would violate existing UN resolutions, they warned.
Meeting between Kim and Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un to the Vostochny cosmodrome in the Russian Far East in September. It has not been officially announced whether agreements have been reached for arms deliveries. At the time, the USA feared that Putin wanted to purchase large quantities of artillery ammunition and rockets from North Korea in order to use them in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. In return, Kim could hope for Russian technology for the construction of satellites or nuclear submarines, it was said at the time.
North Korea is condemned for supplying Russia with military equipment that the country is using to attack Ukrainian cities, kill civilians and further fuel an unlawful war, Kirby warned. The US government published images on Friday showing the containers being transported from North Korea to Russia by ship.