Scale of North Korean Aid to Russia Larger than Previously Thought

What Happened?

According to a recent report from Reuters, North Korea has been providing not only troops but also arms and ammunition to Russia on a massive scale. The Reuters report found that North Korea has been shipping millions of rounds of artillery and other ammunition to Russian forces for use against Ukraine. 

By both cargo ship and by rail, the report detailed how North Korean arms and ammunition have been steadily flowing to Russia since 2023. Ukrainian officials have stated they believe North Korea is supplying more than half of Russia’s ammunition.

North Korea’s delegation to the United Nations in New York did not offer any response to the Reuters report.

Why it Matters

The quantity of the shipments from North Korea to Russia are much larger than previously thought. In the United Kingdom, the Open-Source Center, an independent research organization focused on security, ‘tracked 64 shipments over 20 months carrying nearly 16,000 containers and millions of artillery rounds for use against Ukraine, including a shipment as recent as March 17.’

In addition, thousands of North Korean troops provided additional combat support to Russian forces engaged in battle against Ukraine in the Kursk region. Ukrainian forces had made an incursion into Russia by seizing territory in Kursk, with the hopes of using that land as a bargaining chip to trade in return for Ukrainian land being held by Russia. But, with the help of North Korean forces, Russia has largely managed to expel Ukrainian troops from most of the Kursk region.

The vast scale of external support indicates that Russia would likely not be able to sustain combat operations in Ukraine without North Korean support. What North Korea wants in return is unclear, but at a minimum Russia is likely paying for the arms it receives, and North Korean troops are gaining practical combat experience on a modern battlefield.

Of the two, the combat experience is probably more valuable for North Korea. Lessons learned in Ukraine can be brought back to North Korea and taught to the rest of the armed forces there. Which means the new partnership with Russia is making North Korea even more dangerous. The ability to integrate drones and autonomous weapons systems into conventional operations are likely among the top lessons North Korean forces have learned.

How it Affects You

Even as the United States and Europe have been supplying Ukraine with weapons and ammunition to keep it in the fight, North Korea has been doing the same for Russia. North Korean supplies have kept Russia fighting at a crucial time, since the Trump Administration has been trying to bring about an end to hostilities. 

It now appears that neither Ukraine nor Russia could have long continued to fight without significant aid and assistance from abroad.