- US officials have warned North Korea it will “pay a price” if it strikes any arms deal with Russia, after saying that negotiations were “advancing” between the two nations.
- The National Security Council claimed arms negotiations between Russia and North Korea are “actively advancing,” after Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang.
- Leading media reported the potential meeting between Kim and Putin in Russia is expected to take place this month.
- North Korea delivered infantry rockets and missiles into Russia for use by Wagner forces late last year, and the potential deal being discussed would provide Russian troops with many more weapons, according to the National Security Council spokesman.
- The US and its allies are also concerned about the technology North Korea is seeking from Russia in return for weaponry, according to two US officials.
- Multiple North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile tests in recent months have raised alarm among the US and its allies in South Korea and Japan.
If Pyongyang provides weapons to Moscow to use in the war against Ukraine, it is “not going to reflect well on North Korea and they will pay a price for this in the international community,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told a press briefing.
Sullivan did not elaborate on the potential repercussions for North Korea, which is already under the United Nations and US sanctions imposed over Pyongyang’s weapons of mass destruction program. “We have continued to convey privately as well as publicly to the North Koreans – and asked allies and partners to do the same – our view that they should abide by their publicly stated commitments that they’re not going to provide these weapons,” Sullivan said.
The National Security Council claimed arms negotiations between Russia and North Korea are “actively advancing,” after Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang in July in an attempt to convince it to sell artillery ammunition.
US warns North Korea would ‘pay a price for any arms deal with Russia
The New York Times first reported the potential meeting between Kim and Putin in Russia, saying it is expected to take place this month. At the press briefing, Sullivan also said the discussions between Russia and North Korea are evidence that economic sanctions by the West have succeeded in shrinking Moscow’s defense industrial base.
Since the war began, “we have not seen North Korea actively supply large amounts of munitions or other military capacity to Russia,’ he said, adding that it’s not clear “what has changed in their calculus.”
North Korea delivered infantry rockets and missiles into Russia for use by Wagner forces late last year, and the potential deal being discussed would provide Russian troops with many more weapons, according to National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. Kirby added that any potential new deals could include “multiple types of munitions” and raw materials from North Korea. Russia has also received drones and artillery from Iran.
The US and its allies are also concerned about the technology North Korea is seeking from Russia in return for weaponry, according to two US officials. North Korea is seeking technology that could advance its satellite and nuclear-powered submarine capabilities, officials said, which could significantly advance Pyongyang’s capabilities in areas the rogue regime has not fully developed.
Multiple North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile tests in recent months have raised alarm among the US and its allies in South Korea and Japan as the isolated authoritarian nation increases its efforts to develop weapons capable of potentially striking major US cities.
(With inputs from agencies)
