Russia buys ‘millions’ of rockets and shells from North Korea

Russia is purchasing millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Korea to re-energize its offensive in Ukraine, according to recently declassified U.S. intelligence, as Western sanctions begin to choke Moscow’s supply of weapons.

The Russian ministry of defense was “in the process of purchasing millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Korea for use on the battlefield in Ukraine,” a U.S. official said, citing intelligence recently cleared for public dissemination.

“This purchase indicates that the Russian military continues to suffer from severe supply shortages in Ukraine, due in part to export controls and sanctions,” the official added.

Moscow’s military dealings with North Korea come after recent disclosures that it is also relying on another pariah nation, Iran, to support its war in Ukraine. Russia received its first shipment of Iranian combat drones last week and was likely to receive more, U.S. officials said.

Iran and North Korea are widely seen as relatively unreliable providers of military equipment. U.S. officials said some of the drones purchased by Russia from Iran experienced mechanical failures.

Those officials pointed to Russia’s decision to purchase weapons from the two countries as evidence that export controls and sanctions were significantly hindering Moscow’s ability to meet its weapons supply needs.

Russia is one of the world’s top arms makers, but it relies on components imported from other countries to build them.

Russia’s military purchases from North Korea were first reported by the New York Times. Washington believes Russia could try to purchase more equipment from North Korea as the war grinds on.

Pavel Luzin, an independent Russian military analyst, has estimated that if the war continues at its current level of intensity, Russia will face a “tangible shell shortage” by the end of 2022 and will have to reduce artillery use to save munitions.

Russia’s purchases from North Korea might hamper global efforts to enforce existing U.N. sanctions on Pyongyang, analysts said.

“Russia’s import of weapons from North Korea would be a serious violation of U.N. sanctions, which seriously jeopardizes the integrity of the sanctions regime,” said Aaron Arnold, a counter-proliferation expert who has served in the U.S. government and on a U.N. panel monitoring North Korean sanctions violations.

“Why should other member states, for example, implement U.N. sanctions if Russia, a permanent member of the Security Council, fails to do so?” Arnold added. “Russia’s actions will also likely hamstring the ability of the U.N. sanctions committee to conduct its work, as Russia will use its veto to block any meaningful response.”