North Korea has rapidly transformed into a significant arms supplier for Russia and is making billions of dollars a year in the process.

Russia was short of artillery shells, until the hermit state stepped in and boosted its arsenal with over a million shells, swinging the balance in the artillery duel fought with the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) to Russia’s advantage. Of course, the shells were shoddily made, often didn’t fire or didn’t explode when they landed. But the sheer number of the supplies was all that mattered.

Estimates suggest that North Korean ammunition now makes up to half of Russia's artillery supply in Ukraine – millions of shells delivered over just the past 20 months.

The Open Source Centre and Reuters separately used satellite and detailed three-dimensional imagery to estimate that 64 shipments by four Russian vessels likely carried between 4.2mn and 5.8mn individual cargoes of munitions from North Korea in the last year.

And North Korea’s commitment to the Russian war has deepened, as it has gone beyond munitions and is now sending men into the field to support the Armed Forces of Russia (AFR).

Since late 2023, Pyongyang has dispatched approximately 14,000 troops to assist Russian forces in regions such as Kursk that were occupied by AFU. Of these troops, 4,000 of them have been reportedly killed by the AFU.

Kim Jong Un visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in September 2023 to cut a wide-ranging deal swapping military supplies for key supplies for the Korean economy including weapons, energy and food. This year the two countries have signed a new security deal that includes an Article 5-like mutual security clause that obliges Russia to come to North Korea’s aid if it is attacked by a third power – a commitment that caught analysts by surprise.

And North Korea is cashing in. Analysts estimate that Pyongyang has earned approximately $20bn from Russia since the start of the war, via both direct payments and indirect economic gains, reports NK News.

The strategic partnership between Russia and North Korea has raised concerns among Western officials. Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte has accused Moscow of aiding North Korea's missile and nuclear programmes in exchange for military assistance, a development that could destabilize the Korean Peninsula and pose broader security risks.