The US said North Korea had delivered arms to Russia for use against Ukraine and condemned the move, saying it would further Vladimir Putin’s war and lead to the deaths of more civilians.
(Bloomberg) — The US said North Korea had delivered arms to Russia for use against Ukraine and condemned the move, saying it would further Vladimir Putin’s war and lead to the deaths of more civilians.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters Friday that Pyongyang had provided 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions.
“We condemn the DPRK for providing Russia with this military equipment, which will be used to attack Ukrainian cities, kill Ukrainian civilians and further Russia’s illegitimate war,” Kirby said, using an acronym for North Korea.
Kirby said the US was also concerned about Russia in turn providing assistance to North Korea.
“In return for its support, we assess that Pyongyang is seeking military assistance from Russia, including fighter aircraft surface-to-air missiles, armored vehicles, ballistic missile production equipment, or other materials and other advanced technologies,” he said. “We are monitoring closely whether Moscow will provide Pyongyang with these materials and we have already observed Russian ships offloading containers in the DPRK.”
Kirby cited prior efforts to sanction individuals and entities working to facilitate arms deals between the countries.
“We will enforce those current sanctions where appropriate and we will impose new sanctions against those who are seeking to enable these arms deals,” he said.
The US has previously accused North Korean leader Kim Jong Un of providing arms and ammunition to aid Russia’s war effort.
Efforts to isolate Putin over his invasion of Ukraine have drawn the Russian leader closer to North Korea.
Kim and Putin held a bilateral meeting in September in Russia, where they committed to cooperate on security and space innovation, but which US officials said was focused on furthering arms deals between the two countries.
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