Russia provided North Korea with oil, anti-air missiles and economic help in exchange for troops to support Moscow’s war on Ukraine, government officials and a research group said yesterday.
The US and South Korea have accused the nuclear-armed North of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine, with experts saying North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was eager to gain advanced technology and battle experience for his troops, in return.
Asked what Seoul believes the North has received for the deployment, South Korea’s top security adviser Shin Won-sik said: “It has been identified that equipment and anti-aircraft missiles aimed at reinforcing Pyongyang’s vulnerable air defense system have been delivered to North Korea.”
Photo: KCNA VIA KNS / AFP
Speaking to local broadcaster SBS, Shin added that North Korea has received “various forms of economic support.”
Lee Illwoo, an expert with the Korea Defense Network in South Korea, said that Russia has likely sent S-400 long-range surface-to-air missiles, launchers and ground-based radar systems.
He said that North Korea is capable of building shorter-range surface-to-air missiles on its own.
The S-400 missile, with a range of 400km, is considered one of Russia’s most advanced anti-aircraft weapons. However, Lee questioned how significantly it can boost Pyongyang’s air defense, saying Russian air defense systems have failed to effectively deal with Ukrainian drone assaults.
Separately, non-profit research group Open Source Centre said Pyongyang obtained oil shipments from Russia.
It cited satellite images showing that more than a dozen North Korean oil tankers making a total of 43 trips to an oil terminal at a Russian port over the past eight months, a BBC report said.
Pictures also showed empty tanks leaving almost full after arrival, the report said, quoting British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy as saying that the oil was payment for weapons and troops Pyongyang had sent to Moscow.
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a strategic partnership treaty in June, during the Kremlin chief’s visit.
It obligates both states to provide military assistance “without delay” in the case of an attack on the other and to cooperate internationally to oppose Western sanctions.
Additional reporting by AP
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