Russian President Vladimir Putin departs, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses for a photo during a signing ceremony for a new partnership in Pyongyang. File | Photo credit: AP

Russia has provided North Korea with economic aid in exchange for oil, anti-aircraft missiles and troops to help Moscow in its war against Ukraine, government officials and a research group said Friday.

Also read: North Korea and Russia agree to expand their economic cooperation.

The United States and South Korea have accused North Korea of ​​possessing nuclear weapons. Sending more than 10,000 troops. To help Russia in its war against Ukraine, experts say Kim Jong-un was eager to get advanced technology and combat experience for his troops in return.

Asked what Seoul believed North Korea had received for the deployment, South Korea’s top security adviser, Shin Won-suk, said, “It has been pointed out that Pyongyang’s weak air defense systems equipment and anti-aircraft missiles have been supplied to North Korea to reinforce

Speaking to local broadcaster SBS, Mr Shin added that North Korea had received “various types of economic support”.

Separately, the non-profit research group Open Source Center said Pyongyang had received oil shipments from Russia.

According to a BBC report, it cited satellite images showing more than a dozen North Korean oil tankers making a total of 43 trips to oil terminals in Russian ports over the past eight months. are

The photos also showed empty tanks that were nearly full after they arrived, the report quoted British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy as saying that the oil was payment for weapons and troops that Pyongyang had sent to Moscow.

Breakthrough document

North Korean leader Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a strategic partnership agreement in June during a visit by the Kremlin chief.

It obligates the two states to provide military assistance “without delay” in the event of an attack on the other and cooperate internationally to counter Western sanctions.

Mr Putin called the deal a “breakthrough document”.

Experts say Pyongyang could use Ukraine as a tool to reshape foreign policy.

By sending in troops, North Korea is positioning itself as a supplier of weapons, military aid and labor to the Russian war economy — potentially to its traditional ally, neighbor and key trading partner, China, according to analysts. Ignoring

They say Russia could also give North Korea access to its vast natural resources, such as oil and gas.

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui recently visited Moscow and said his country would “stand firm with our Russian comrades until Victory Day”.

He called Moscow’s attack on Ukraine a “sacred struggle” and said Pyongyang believed in Putin’s “wise leadership.”

North Korea and Russia are under UN sanctions – Kim for its nuclear weapons program, and Moscow for its war in Ukraine.

When asked publicly about the North Korean troop deployment last month, Putin sidestepped the question to criticize Western support for Ukraine.

North Korea said last month that any troop deployment to Russia would be “in accordance with international law,” but declined to confirm that it had sent troops.

The troop deployment by North Korea marks a shift in tone from Seoul, which has resisted calls to send lethal weapons to Kiev, but has recently signaled it may reverse its longstanding policy.