Officials believe Moscow could buy additional North Korean military equipment in the future as the war continues, the New York Times reported, citing the downgraded finding by US intelligence. The Kremlin’s move toward the isolated state shows that “the Russian military continues to suffer from severe supply shortages in Ukraine, in part due to export controls and sanctions,” a US official told The Associated Press. Ukraine ‘making real gains’ – follow the latest updates The New York Times cited US government officials as saying markets indicated that US sanctions were beginning to bite and reduce Russia’s ability to sustain its invasion of Ukraine. It comes after US President Joe Biden’s administration confirmed that the Russian military had delivered Iranian-made drones for battlefield use in Ukraine in August. Russia took delivery of the Mohajer-6 and Shahed series unmanned aerial vehicles for several days last month as part of what the government says is likely part of a Russian plan to acquire hundreds of Iranian UAVs for use in Ukraine. Last month, a US official told Reuters that Russian Iranian drones had suffered “multiple failures”. North Korea has sought closer ties with Russia as much of Europe and the West have drifted away, blaming the US for the crisis in Ukraine and denouncing the West’s “hegemonic policy” as justification for Russian military action in Ukraine to protect itself. Pyongyang has hinted it is interested in sending construction workers to help rebuild Russian-held territory in the country’s east. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 0:53 Putin shows off his falconry skills North Korea became the only nation besides Russia and Syria to recognize the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk in July. Its arms exports to Russia would be a violation of UN resolutions that prohibit the country from exporting or importing weapons from other countries. Sending workers to Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine would also violate a UN resolution that requires all member states to repatriate North Korean workers from their soil by 2019. There are suspicions that Russia and China have not fully enforced UN sanctions on North Korea, which has complicated the US-led approach to denuclearize North Korea.
