White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Tuesday warned North Korea against supplying weapons to Russia during the war against Ukraine. He said Pyongyang “will pay a price” if it goes through with a possible deal.
Sullivan told reporters that discussions between North Korea and Russia over Pyongyang’s military support are “actively progressing,” moving towards possible top-leader-level talks.
“The Russians imbued them with greater intensity,” Sullivan said of the discussions.
Sullivan also warned that North Korea will face consequences from the international community if it decides to hand over arms to Russia.
“Supplying weapons to Russia for use on the battlefield to attack grain silos and heating infrastructure of major cities as we enter winter, to attempt to seize territory belonging to another sovereign nation – this will not reflect well on North Korea, and they will.” pay a price in the international community for this,” he said.
US officials said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may travel to Russia to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The officials also said Russia would buy munitions from North Korea in exchange for supplying food and critical technology to Pyongyang.
North Korea has a robust defense production base for artillery shells, which could benefit Russian forces engaged in a heavy war in Ukraine.
Concerns about a developing military alliance between the two countries have increased since Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu traveled to North Korea in July.
Sullivan said Tuesday that Shoigu was asking for military support during the July trip. He said Russia has become desperate during the war and is looking for additional support to strengthen its objectives in Ukraine.
“We have continued to pressure the Russian defense industrial base and they are now going to look for whatever resource they can find,” he said.
The US has already imposed sanctions on North Korean entities that supplied arms and ammunition to the Wagner Group, a mercenary company that has been fighting in Ukraine on behalf of Moscow. But there is no evidence that Pyongyang has directly supported Russian forces.
In recent weeks, Washington has begun to warn that this could change. Sullivan promised that the US and its allies will continue to try to dissuade North Korea from making a deal, and said the White House will report publicly on developments.
“We will continue to call on North Korea to honor its public commitments not to supply Russia with weapons that will ultimately kill Ukrainians,” he said.
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