North Korean leader Kim Jong-un influential sister on May 17, 2024, dismissed allegations of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, stressing that her country’s weapons are not for sale for other countries, including Russia, but as a defence against South Korea, South Korean media reported.
The US on May 16, 2024, imposed sanctions on three Russian entities and two Russian individuals for their involvement in the transfer of military equipment and components between Pyongyang and Moscow amid the ongoing war against Ukraine.
Kim Yo-jong’s statement comes amid US claims that North Korea has supplied weapons to Russia to support the latter’s war in Ukraine “We have no intention to export our military technical capabilities to any country or open them to the public,” Kim said, adding that such allegations are “the most absurd paradox”, reported South Korean media citing a Korean agency
Kim said that North Korea’s tactical weapons, including multiple rocket launchers and missiles, are intended to deter South Korea from engaging in “any idle thinking,” in an apparent reference to the South Korea-US joint military drills. Moreover, North Korea has been denouncing the allies’ military drills as rehearsals for an invasion against it while, Seoul and Washington have rejected such claims, describing their exercises as defensive in nature.
“What is most urgent for us is not to ‘advertise’ or ‘export’ something but to make the war readiness and war deterrent of our army more perfect in quality and quantity and to make the enemy unable to overcome the inferiority in military capability,” she said. Meanwhile, South Korea’s unification ministry said that North Korea’s denial of providing weapons to Russia, despite clear evidence, is showing that the regime is aware of the illegality of such actions.
“We must once again emphasize that the arms trade between Russia and North Korea is an illegal act that violates the UN Security Council resolutions and undermines international norms,” said Kim In-ae, deputy spokesperson at the ministry, during a press briefing.
In addition to the US imposing sanctions on Russian entities, America also claimed that Russia has relied upon North Korea to wage its war on Ukraine and said that the relationship between the two countries poses a wide-ranging threat to global security and the international non-proliferation regime. “The United States will continue to take action to hold accountable those who seek to facilitate the shipment of weapons and other material to enable Russia’s war,” Under Secretary of the US Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement.
According to the statement released by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), at a time when the United States and its allies are increasingly concerned about Russia’s deepening ties with North Korea, as well as China.
Russia and North Korea have boosted their military cooperation over the past year, the department said, with Pyongyang providing ballistic missiles and munitions for Russian forces to attack Ukraine. It also said North Korea is seeking military assistance from Russia in return.
The United States said it will continue to take all necessary steps to counter the “destabilizing” Russia-North Korea partnership while calling on other countries to join Washington’s efforts.
Recently, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected sites of weapons development, but he did not issue any bellicose messages against Seoul, spreading speculation that the North has been ramping up arms production for exports to Russia. Earlier on May 10, he oversaw a test-firing of controllable shells for “the technically updated version” of the 240mm multiple rocket launcher system. The weapon system is believed to target South Korea’s broader capital area.
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