Iran and North Korea continue to provide lethal weapons to Russia for war against Ukraine, – ISW

Iran and North Korea continue to provide lethal weapons to Russia for the war against Ukraine, – ISW Vladislav Kravtsov

Russia still receives lethal weapons from Iran and North Korea/Collage 24 Channel

Analysts from the American Institute for the Study of War stated that Iran and North Korea continue to deepen their involvement in the war against Ukraine. These countries are still providing Russia with lethal weapons to attack Ukrainian military or populated areas.

In exchange for this, as noted by ISW, Russia continues to deepen bilateral relations with these two states.

What is known about Russia's strengthening cooperation with Iran and the DPRK

Analysts noted that Iran's state-run Mehr News Agency reported that Iran will launch its Khod-Khod and Kosar satellites into low Earth orbit from an unspecified Russian station in October.

In addition, the Bank of Korea estimates that in 2023, the gross North Korea's domestic product grew 3.1% from 2022. The growth was the first recorded after an annual decline since 2019.

The Korea Bank also calculated that the DPRK's heavy and chemical industries, in particular the production of iron, steel, copper, nickel and aluminum, grew by 8.1% in 2023.

South Korean Defense Minister Shin Wonsik previously said that Russia's food supplies to North Korea in exchange for weapons helped Pyongyang stabilize prices and likely stimulated North Korean domestic production.

ISW also noted that North Korea transferred up to 4.8 million artillery shells to Russia, and Iran supplied Shahed-136/131 drones and components for them to Russia.