Following criticism from other nations, North Korea says support for Putin's military efforts is 'cream of inter-state relations'
11:17, Tue, Jun 3, 2025 | UPDATED: 11:27, Tue, Jun 3, 2025
Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin have been helping each other out recently (Image: Getty)
North Korea has defended its military relationship with Russia after rival nations condemned it as 'unlawful', insisting the close ties between the two countries help 'ensure peace and stability' in Europe and Asia.
Officals spoke out after multilateral sanctions monitoring group including South Korea, the US, Japan and seven other countries criticised their collaboration.
Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed during the conflict so far, with thousands more injured.
Defending the ties between the two countries, the Pyongyang spokesperson described it as the "cream of inter-state relations” that is "aimed at protecting the sovereignty, territorial integrity and security interests of the states".
The Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team, a relatively new outfit launched last October, keeps a watchful eye on violations of UN Security Council sanctions against North Korea.
It does so independently of the United Nations itself with its formation coming hot on the heels of Russia’s veto of a Security Council resolution, a move that dismantled the previous system for tracking North Korea’s compliance.
That system had been ticking along since 2006, with its sanctions gradually cranked tighter over the years.
According to the team’s findings in a new report, Russian-flagged cargo ships hauled in as many as "nine million rounds of mixed artillery and multiple rocket launcher ammunition" from North Korea to Russia in 2024.
In return, "Russia is believed to have provided North Korea with air defence equipment and anti-aircraft missiles", it said.
In April, North Korea confirmed for the first time that it had deployed troops to Russia—the aim. to back Moscow in its grinding war against Ukraine.
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Citing an unnamed team member, the report says North Korea last year transferred at least 100 ballistic missiles to Russia, which were launched into Ukraine “to destroy civilian infrastructure and terrorise populated areas such as Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia.”
It also transferred “elements of three brigade sets of heavy artillery,” the report said.
It includes images of a North Korean 170mm self-propelled gun that it said was being transported through Russia, and North Korean multiple rocket launcher ammunition and an anti-tank missile, which it said were found in Ukraine.
The team said in a joint statement that it will continue to monitor implementation of UN resolutions “and raise awareness of ongoing attempts to violate and evade UN sanctions”.
It urged North Korea “to engage in meaningful diplomacy”.