“While North Korea’s arms factories operate at 30 percent capacity due to shortages of raw materials and power, certain factories are operating at full capacity, which primarily produce weapons and shells for Russia,” Shin said.
Shin’s comments come as Ukraine struggles with ammunition shortages due to delays in Western aid, as Russia’s full-scale invasion enters its third year. A massive tranche of American military aid has become snarled up in the U.S. Congress, with many House Republicans unwilling to continue funding Kyiv’s war effort.
Last week, EU top diplomat Josep Borrell wrote a letter to EU foreign and defense ministers calling on them to support Kyiv. “Ukrainian soldiers are hampered in their fight against the aggressor — because they lack ammunition,” he said.
In November, the EU condemned reports of arms transfers between Pyongyang and Moscow.
“The EU is deeply concerned by reports about arms transfers and military cooperation between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Russian Federation for the use in Russia’s illegal, unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine,” it said.
Both Russia and North Korea have in the past denied claims that Pyongyang supplies weapons or ammunition to the Kremlin’s forces.
