Russians buy armaments from North Korea

The White House stated that Russian mercenaries from the so-called Wagner PMC bought weapons from Pyongyang.

This was voiced by John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council in the White House.

John Kirby stated that the North Korean deliveries began in November but did not affect the course of the war.

According to the U.S., the “Wagner group” is looking for arms suppliers around the world to support its military operations in Ukraine.

“We can confirm that North Korea has completed the initial supply of weapons to the Wagner Group, which paid for the equipment,” John Kirby said.

Kirby said the U.S. would introduce additional sanctions against Russian mercenaries in the coming weeks.

Although the U.S. does not believe that these supplies will change the dynamics of hostilities in Ukraine, it is “concerned that North Korea plans to supply more military aid.”

Wagner owner Yevgeniy Prigozhin reportedly spends $100 million a month on mercenaries and is having trouble finding recruits. Kirby added that Wagner representatives, including Prigozhin, went to prisons and recruited inmates, even those with serious illnesses.

According to US estimates, about 50,000 “Wagner” people were deployed in Ukraine – 10,000 contractors and 40,000 convicts.

At the same time, mercenaries play an important role in the battle of Bakhmut, where some of the fiercest battles have taken place recently. According to Kirby, the group also conducted combat operations in other parts of Donbas, and the Russian military was in some cases under Wagner’s command.

In recent weeks, about 1,000 Wagner combatants have been killed in the fighting, 90% of whom have been convicted.

“He’s literally throwing bodies into the meat grinder over there in Bakhmut,” Kirby noted.