From the White House .. new information on the “Russia-North Korea” deal

“We envisaged it could actually include millions of rounds, rockets, and artillery shells from North Korea,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.

Violation of sanctions

• Earlier, a US official reported that Russia is supplying a large amount of weapons and ammunition from North Korea for use in Ukraine.

• “AFP” quoted the official, who asked not to be identified, that “the Russian Defense Ministry obtains millions of missiles and artillery shells from North Korea for use on the battlefield in Ukraine”, in a possible violation of international sanctions.

• He added that these purchases “indicate that the Russian army is still facing a severe shortage, partly caused by the sanctions” imposed by the West on Moscow after the military attack on Ukraine that began on February 24.

• The official continued: “As a result, the United States expects that Russia will continue to supply military equipment from North Korea in the future.”

The New York Times was the first to disclose this information.

Russia finds itself under pressure more than six months after it launched the war in Ukraine, which benefits from massive Western military aid.

Iran in the picture

The new information comes after the US administration recently confirmed that the Russian army received Iranian-made drones last August for use on the battlefield in Ukraine.

The White House said last week that Russia had had technical problems with the rallies it got from Tehran in August.

Russia held “Muhajir 6” and “Shahid” rallies over several days last month, as part of what the Biden administration said was a Russian plan to obtain hundreds of Iranian rallies.

North Korea has sought to deepen its ties with Russia, blamed the United States for the Ukraine crisis, and denounced what it saw as the West’s “hegemonic policy”.