United States Government has urged the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to cease its arms negotiations with Russia and abide by the public commitment that the Pyongyang has made, to not provide or sell arms to Russia.
The call was made in a Press Briefing on Tuesday by the Deputy Spokesman for State Department, Vedant Patel said there’s potential consequences of any country taking action to support Russia further its illegal and unjust war of aggression in Ukraine.
This came when a journalist asked over the meeting between the North Korea President, Kim Jong-un and his counterpart from Russia, Vladimir Putin on the continuation of arm negotiation which the Russian Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu reported started last month.
Patel said United States has warned publicly for some time now that arms negotiations between Russia and the DPRK are actively advancing, adding that information has it that Kim Jong-un expects these discussions to continue, to include leader-level diplomatic engagement in Russia.
He noted that Russia has been forced to search desperately around the world for weapons it can use in its war in Ukraine because sanctions and export controls and the effects that those have had, which has made it harder for them to get material that they needed.
The Deputy Spokesman said, “We’ve seen this with their attempts at a security relationship with the DPRK and the deepening relationships with the Iranian regime and their provision of drones that we’ve talked a great deal about as well”.
According to him, “we have been incredibly clear about the potential consequences of any country taking action to support Russia further its illegal and unjust war of aggression in Ukraine.
“And you have seen us take action in a number of these instances. I’m not going to preview actions from here, but of course we will calibrate appropriately with our allies and partners, including those in region, and take appropriate steps as necessary”, he said.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Russia’s Defence Minister, Sergei Shoigu, had tried to “convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition” to Russia during a recent visit to North Korea.
It is thought that Russia might need 122mm and 152mm shells because its stocks are running low, but it is not easy to determine North Korea’s full artillery inventory, given its secretive nature.
Weapons on display at the meeting between Mr Kim and Mr Shoigu in July included the Hwasong intercontinental ballistic missile, believed to be the country’s first ICBM to use solid propellants.
The two leaders last met in 2019, when Mr Kim arrived by train in Vladivostok, in Russia’s far east. He was welcomed by officials with a traditional offering of bread and salt. This was also probably the last time Mr Kim travelled abroad.
There is concern both in Washington and in Seoul about what North Korea would get in return for an arms deal, which may result in increased military co-operation between the two countries in Asia.