By John Harney
North Korea has become a crucial source of missiles, munitions and even soldiers for Russia’s war in Ukraine as the sanctions-defying alliance between the two countries intensifies, according to a report by 11 countries, including the US and Japan.
Last year North Korea “transferred to Russia at least 100 ballistic missiles, which were subsequently launched into Ukraine to destroy civilian infrastructure and terrorize populated areas such as Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia,” the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team said in the report released Thursday by the US and allies including Japan, South Korea, the UK, Australia and Canada.
The panel, which investigates violations of United Nations sanctions against North Korea, also found that Pyongyang “deployed over 11,000 troops into eastern Russia in late 2024, which were moved to the far-western Kursk Oblast where they began engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces in support of Russia’s war against Ukraine.”
Also Read
The soldiers wore Russian uniforms and had been trained by Russian troops before going into battle, according to the monitoring team, whose findings were reported earlier by the Wall Street Journal. At least two North Korean soldiers were captured alive by Ukraine.
The report was released with President Donald Trump expressing growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin, after the Kremlin carried out its largest drone barrage of the war. The US leader said Putin is “playing with fire” and signaled he’d consider imposing new sanctions on Moscow.
Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have visited each other’s countries since the war began and agreed to a mutual defense treaty last year. In April, North Korea acknowledged for the first time that it had deployed soldiers to help drive out Ukrainian troops who had captured part of Russia’s Kursk region.
The closer relations benefitted both countries, with Russia helping North Korea evade UN sanctions and providing Kim’s regime with military assistance. Part of that aid involved “advanced electronic warfare systems including jamming equipment using Russian cargo aircraft,” according to the report.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Western allies to provide about $30 billion by the end of the year to boost domestic weapons production and hold off Russia’s advance.
Germany has agreed to provide Ukraine with €5 billion ($5.7 billion) in military aid as part of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s pledge to help Kyiv build long-range weapons to hit targets in Russian territory.
