Russia’s efforts to get ammo from North Korea are ‘actively advancing,’ White House says

The Biden White House said Wednesday that arms negotiations between Russia and North Korea are “actively advancing,” as Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and other officials from Moscow have traveled to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea recently to talk about arms deals, including the sale of artillery ammunition. “Under these potential deals, Russia would receive significant quantities and multiple types of munitions from the DPRK which the Russian military plans to use in Ukraine,” John Kirby, the strategic-communications coordinator for President Joe Biden’s National Security Council, told reporters. “These potential deals could also include the provision of raw materials that would assist Russia’s defense industrial base.” Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have “exchanged letters pledging to increase their bilateral cooperation,” Kirby also said. The White House has said previously that it has evidence that Russia is looking to North Korea for weapons to fuel the war in Ukraine.