DPRK hands over 3.5 million rounds of ammunition to Russia

16 November, 2024 A box with two 152 mm artillery rounds produced by the DPRK, October 2023. Photo by Ukrainian weapon tracker. North Korea has transferred at least 3.5 million artillery rounds to Russia.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi shared in an interview with Ukrainian Radio that the DPRK had already transferred a large number of weapons for the war against Ukraine. "As for North Korea, they have transferred at least 3.5 million artillery rounds, and then they transferred missiles," Zelenskyi stated. The President emphasized that Ukraine had all the necessary evidence and had already passed it to international partners.

"More than 11 thousand North Korean servicemen are on the territory of the Russian Federation. Some of them, most of them, are already in the Kursk region, they are training, preparing, and taking part in hostilities," Zelenskyi emphasized.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi during an interview with Suspilne TV, Kyiv, November 15, 2024.

Office of the President of Ukraine

According to the President, further participation and the number of DPRK troops in the war against Ukraine depends on how the international community will react. Recently, North Korean long-range 170 mm M1989 Koksan howitzers were also spotted on Russian territory while being transported by rail.

Reactions of North and South Korea

South Korean President Yun Seok-yeol has urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to play a "constructive" role amid Pyongyang's deepening military cooperation with Russia. "I hope that our two countries will work together to promote stability and peace in the region in response to North Korea's repeated provocations, the war in Ukraine, and military cooperation between Russia and North Korea," Yoon said.

He called China an "important country" for close cooperation in security, economy, culture and people-to-people exchanges, adding that he expects the two countries to develop their strategic partnership based on "mutual respect, reciprocity and common interests."

President of South Korea Yun Seok-yeol, Photo: yna.co.kr

In response, Xi said that China didn't want to escalate the tensions on the Korean Peninsula and expressed hope that the parties involved would seek a peaceful settlement through dialogue and negotiations for a "political solution," the agency quoted South Korean Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo as saying.

"Although the global and regional situation has changed greatly over the past two years, China-South Korea relations have generally maintained momentum for development," Xi remarked.