• North Korea supplies 4-6 million artillery shells to Russia, becoming its top supplier for the Ukraine war.
• Over 10,000 North Korean troops are now fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine’s Kursk region.
• Russia is exchanging advanced military tech for North Korean ammunition, violating sanctions.
• North Korean POWs reveal forced deployment, with thousands killed or wounded in Ukraine.
• The Russia-North Korea alliance challenges Western dominance, risking global security.

North Korea has become the primary supplier of artillery shells for Russia’s war in Ukraine, shipping between 4 million and 6 million rounds—enough to sustain Moscow’s forces for months. Reports confirm Pyongyang has also deployed more than 10,000 troops to fight alongside Russian soldiers in Ukraine’s contested Kursk region.

This unprecedented military partnership underscores a growing alliance between two of the world’s most heavily sanctioned regimes, raising alarms about weakened Western resolve and the erosion of decades-old nonproliferation efforts.

North Korea now supplies 100% of Russia’s artillery shells

The scale of North Korea’s involvement is staggering. According to a Reuters investigation, Russian-flagged vessels have made 64 shipments of munitions from North Korea since September 2023, delivering nearly 16,000 containers packed with artillery shells. Ukrainian officials estimate these shipments comprise half to 70% of Russia’s artillery needs, with some Russian units firing exclusively North Korean shells.

“[Without] Chairman Kim Jong Un’s support, President Vladimir Putin wouldn’t really be able to prosecute his war in Ukraine,” said Hugh Griffiths, former coordinator of the UN panel monitoring North Korea sanctions. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the GUR, echoed this, stating: “Without help from the DPRK, the Russian army shelling of Ukrainian defensive positions would have been cut in half.”

Despite billions in Western military aid to Ukraine, Russia maintains a 10-to-1 artillery advantage. The U.S. and Europe’s inability to match Pyongyang’s output has left Ukrainian forces outgunned—a serious indictment of ineffective Western supply strategies.

A dangerous quid pro quo: Russian tech for North Korean shells

In exchange for munitions, Moscow is allegedly providing Pyongyang with satellite technology, ballistic missile expertise, and oil, directly undermining international sanctions designed to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

South Korean officials warn Russia may have transferred anti-air missile systems and other advanced arms to North Korea—boosting Kim Jong Un’s capabilities just as tensions with Seoul escalate. These transfers could accelerate Pyongyang’s development of nuclear-powered submarines, ICBM reentry technology, and spy satellites, posing a direct threat to U.S. allies in Asia.

10,000 North Korean troops on the ground in Ukraine

Beyond supplying weapons, North Korea has sacrificed its own soldiers in Russia’s war effort. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed in January 2025 that two captured North Korean POWs admitted they were unaware they would be deployed to Ukraine until arriving in Russia. Intelligence reports suggest at least 4,000 North Korean troops were killed or wounded in Kursk by early 2025, with Pyongyang sending 3,000 replacements.

Despite initial struggles with drone warfare, North Korean forces have adapted quickly, now serving as shock troops for Russian assaults. “They continue to be used as assault units that advance, storm. And behind them are units of the Russian Federation, which consolidate and hold positions,” said a Ukrainian commander fighting in Kursk.

A weakening West, a strengthening axis

The deepening ties between Russia and North Korea represent a strategic catastrophe for U.S. interests. While Washington debates further aid to Ukraine, Putin and Kim have forged a mutually exploitative pact: Russia gains artillery to batter Ukraine, while North Korea secures the technology to threaten America and its allies.

Despite billions in taxpayer-funded military aid, Ukraine remains at a severe disadvantage, underscoring the failures of disjointed Western strategy. Meanwhile, Moscow and Pyongyang’s alliance sends a clear message: Sanctioned regimes are no longer isolated.

The West must confront this new reality: Russia and North Korea are now openly cooperating to dismantle the U.S.-led world order. If unchecked, this axis could expand further, drawing in Iran and China while neutralizing sanctions through shadow trade. “The only country that can provide [Russia] that kind of [ammunition] volume, besides Russia, is North Korea,” warned Yang Uk of Seoul’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies.

 

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

Reuters.com

YNA.co.kr