US, Ukraine, dozens more condemn alleged Russia-North Korea arms transfers

Dozens of countries have joined Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States in condemning alleged ballistic missile transfers between North Korea and Russia, which they said were in breach of United Nations sanctions.

In a joint statement, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the foreign ministers from some 47 countries including Argentina, Australia, Guatemala, Japan and South Korea, condemned the alleged arms transfers in the “strongest possible terms”, saying the weapons had been used against Ukraine on December 30 and January 2.

“The transfer of these weapons increases the suffering of the Ukrainian people, supports Russia’s war of aggression and undermines the global non-proliferation regime,” Wednesday’s statement said, noting such cooperation would also provide technical and military insights to North Korea.

“We are deeply concerned about the security implications that this cooperation has in Europe, on the Korean Peninsula, across the Indo-Pacific region, and around the world,” it said.

In a briefing earlier, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Russia had since used more North Korean weapons in Ukraine, including one that landed in Kharkiv, the country’s second biggest city.

The US and its allies plan to raise the issue with the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday, he added.

The statement added that weapons procurement and supply between Pyongyang and Moscow was in breach of multiple UNSC resolutions imposed from 2006 in response to North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment when asked about the alleged weapons transfers.