As of: February 7, 2024, 7:41 p.m
By: Victoria Krumbeck
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They stick together in crisis situations: Due to international sanctions, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un look after each other.
Moscow/Pyongyang – North Korea and Russia have something in common.
Both countries are isolated from Western states.
While Russia is at war with Ukraine, experts warn of a possible war between North and South Korea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are said to be supporting each other, according to US intelligence information.
Putin is clearing the way for North Korea to obtain financial resources, but Kim Jong-un should continue to supply arms.
Russia and North Korea deals: money in exchange for weapons for Ukraine
According to a US intelligence official, Russia is believed to have released $9 million of a total of $30 million in frozen North Korean assets, the
New York Times
reports.
This allows North Korea to circumvent international sanctions.
In return, Russia continues to receive North Korean missiles and artillery ammunition for the war in Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (l.) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (r.) help each other (archive photo).
© Kremlin/UPI Photo/IMAGO
The money is said to have been deposited at a Russian financial institution.
North Korea will probably use the money to buy crude oil, according to the report.
Just a few days ago, Kim Jong-un drew attention to the “terrible situation” in the country.
The poor supply of food for the people in North Korea has been leading to famine for a long time.
North Korea circumvents UN sanctions with Russia's help - ammunition for war in Ukraine
In addition, a North Korean shell company had recently opened an account at another Russian bank, the intelligence official explained.
This could indicate that North Korea, with Russia's support, is trying to circumvent UN sanctions.
A senior US official told the
New York Times
that North Korea was helping Russia in return with North Korean arms transfers.
There have been frequent meetings between the two countries in recent months.
Kim Jong-un met with Putin's foreign minister in Pyongyang last fall and North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui only visited Putin in Moscow in January.
According to the deputy head of Ukraine's Main Military Reconnaissance Directorate (GUR), Vadym Skibitsky, North Korea is believed to have delivered one million rounds of artillery ammunition to Russia between September and November 2023.
However, the North Korean deliveries are causing problems among Putin's troops.
Russia's cooperation with North Korea: “Friends with benefits”
The
Institute for the Study of War
(ISW) think tank believes that Russia would be open to cooperation with North Korea in finance, technology and defense if North Korea provides artillery ammunition and ballistic missiles for the Ukraine war.
North Korea could also benefit from cooperation with Russia.
By using North Korean weapons in Ukraine, technical data on performance could be collected and used for research and development in North Korea.
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Former CIA analyst Soo Kim expressed
doubts about the autocrats' friendship in the
New York Times .
Even if the two countries were currently “friends with benefits,” she cannot imagine that Russia’s trust in North Korea would be so great that the country would “give away its valuable secrets.”
(vk)