By supplying weapons to Russia, North Korea certainly receives not only food and fuel in return, writes the American magazine Foreign Policy.
It is noted that intensified supplies of weapons to help Russia in the war against Ukraine have increased anxiety in Washington about the emergence of a strong coalition of anti-Western countries, including China and Iran.
At the same time, the extent to which Russia is ready to provide advanced military technology to North Korea is much more alarming and difficult to determine, the magazine writes.
“This was a problem for the Biden White House long before the new mutual defense pact. The administration is particularly concerned about the transfer of fighter jets, tanks and missile technology, although Moscow has been supplying Pyongyang with missile technology for several decades,” the publication said.
It says that Pyongyang's numerous wish lists could include satellite technology, missile guidance systems, intercontinental ballistic missile delivery systems and even advanced submarine technology. However, what Russia provides or will provide from this is currently unclear.
"What does North Korea get out of this? We just don't know. The Russians didn't really say they gave anything special. There is no real, reliable information, except for information about the supply of food and oil. As for the transfer of military technology, there is no factual information… North Korea can benefit from anything, not just nuclear technology. They have huge needs in the field of conventional weapons, in dual-purpose technologies," said former US State Department employee and North Korean arms proliferation expert Wang Diepen.
Foreign Policy added that one of the main fears is that renewed relations between Pyongyang and Moscow could push Kim Jong Un to take an even more aggressive line regionally, or allow him to revive one of his grandfather's favorite games: balancing China and Russia one against the other.
In addition, deepening ties with the Russian Federation can give it the appearance of international legitimacy, the magazine added.
Among the already received benefits for North Korea, the magazine listed the following "victories":
- in the spring of 2024, Russia blocked in the UN the resumption of the activity of the body that monitors compliance with sanctions against North Korea's missile and nuclear programs;
- in June, North Korea and Russia signed a bilateral defense pact, essentially an updated version of a similar agreement made in the 1960s.
We will remind, the experts came to the conclusion that it is the North Korean artillery shells (although they are worn out) that keep Russia in the battle. The supply of old and often unreliable ammunition from the DPRK over the past year has become one of the biggest threats to Ukraine's ability to withstand the onslaught of Russian forces.