Russia is once again turning to North Korea as it looks to buy more ammunition to replenish its shrinking supplies amidst the ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby noted that any arms deal between North Korea and Russia would be a violation of several United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Kirby added that the U.S. would continue to recognize and try to halt Russian attempts to obtain ammunition from North Korea or from any other state that might be willing to help the Kremlin wage its conflict with Ukraine.
"This is yet another example of how desperate [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is becoming, because his war machine is being affected by the sanctions and the export controls," Kirby said.
Both sides of the conflict in Ukraine have been dealing with ammunition shortages almost since the very beginning of the fighting. President Joe Biden last month, in a bid to get Congress to approve another arms shipment to Kyiv, warned that Ukraine was running out of ammunition. Moscow itself has previously turned to Pyongyang for ammunition and other supplies.
Russian defense minister went to Pyongyang to negotiate ammunition contract with North Korea
Kirby's announcement was based on declassified U.S. intelligence and comes after a visit by Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu to Pyongyang, which was reportedly done to confirm North Korea and Russia's military partnership.
Shoigu and an accompanying Russian delegation officially went to North Korea to participate in the country's celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Korean War armistice in 1953.
During the celebrations, Shoigu met with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong un and attended a high-profile military parade.
"We remain concerned that the DPRK continues to contemplate providing military support to Russia's military operations against Ukraine," said Kirby, who announced that it was Shoigu's intention to shore up North Korean support.
"To that end, our information indicates that Russia is seeking to increase military cooperation with the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea], such as through DPRK sale of artillery munitions to Russia," added Kirby.
The announcement about Russia's alleged dealings with North Korea also comes after the U.S. has, in recent months, cited other intelligence indicating the willingness of China and Iran to supply Russia with military aid. (Related: Intelligence report: China likely providing military aid to Russia.)
Earlier this year, U.S. intelligence claimed that North Korea provided rockets and missiles to the then-Kremlin-aligned mercenary organization, the Wagner Group, and that Russia offered food deliveries in exchange for other weapons.
Slovakia, a member of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was sanctioned by the U.S. in March for allegedly attempting to broker an arms deal between Russia and North Korea, which would see Pyongyang send weapons and munitions to Moscow in exchange for raw materials, commodities and commercial aircraft.
"[Putin] is going through a vast amount of inventory to try to subjugate Ukraine, and he's reaching out to countries like North Korea, like Iran, and certainly he's been trying to reach out to China to get support for his war machine," said Kirby.
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