Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during a signing ceremony of the new partnership in Pyongyang, North Korea.

Russia has supplied air defense missile systems to North Korea in exchange for sending its troops to support Russia's war efforts against Ukraine, a top South Korean official said Friday.

The U.S., South Korea and Ukraine say North Korea sent more than 10,000 troops to Russia in October, some of whom have recently begun engaging in combat on the front lines. North Korea's troop deployment threatens to escalate the war, and what Russia could give to the North in return has been a source of rampant international speculation.

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The most alarming development for South Korea and the U.S. would be Russia transferring sophisticated weapons technology that can enhance North Korea's nuclear-capable missiles targeting its rivals. Many experts say, though, that it is unlikely Russia would do this in the initial stage of the North’s troop deployment.

Shin Wonsik, national security adviser for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, told an SBS TV program Friday that South Korea has found Russia provided missiles and other equipment to help it reinforce its air defense network for Pyongyang, the capital. Shin didn’t say what specific missiles Russia gave to North Korea.

Lee Illwoo, an expert with the Korea Defense Network in South Korea, said that Russia has likely sent S-400 long-range surface-to-air missiles, launchers and ground-based radar systems. He said that North Korea is capable of building shorter-range surface-to-air missiles on its own.

The S-400 missile, with a range of 400 kilometers (250 miles), is considered one of Russia’s most advanced anti-aircraft weapons. But Lee questioned how significantly it can boost Pyongyang’s air defense, saying Russian air defense systems have failed to effectively deal with Ukrainian drone assaults.

Many observers say North Korea has likely felt the urgent need to boost its air defense capabilities after it last month accused South Korea of flying drones to scatter propaganda leaflets over Pyongyang. North Korea threatened to take military action if leaflets were again dropped. South Korea’s military has refused to confirm whether or not it was behind the alleged drone flights.

Kim Dae Young, a military expert at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy, said it’s possible that the air defense systems North Korea acquired from Russia could include counter-drone equipment.

Kim said that Pyongyang's outdated air defense system would need years of improvement and potentially huge external help to cope with the superior air forces of South Korea and the United States.

Shin said Russia has also appeared to have given economic assistance to North Korea and various military technologies, including those needed for the North's efforts to build a reliable space-based surveillance system. Shin didn’t say whether Russia has already transferred sensitive nuclear and missile technologies to North Korea.

During a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin already said that Moscow was willing to help the North build satellites. North Korea put its first spy satellite into orbit in November last year, but foreign experts question whether that satellite can produce militarily meaningful imagery. The North's attempt to launch a second spy satellite failed in May.

North Korea and Russia have been sharply boosting their military and other cooperation in the face of separate confrontations with the U.S. and its allies. Last month, South Korea's spy agency said that North Korea had sent more than 13,000 containers of artillery, missiles and other conventional arms to Russia since August 2023 to replenish its dwindling weapons stockpiles. The National Intelligence Service said Wednesday that North Korea had recently sent additional artillery systems to Russia.

Earlier this week, North Korea and Russia reached a new agreement for expanding economic cooperation following high-level talks in Pyongyang this week, according to the countries’ state-run media.

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The photos that expose Russia’s oil-for-troops deal with North Korea

The Yu Son oil tanker appeared to be weighed down with cargo when leaving Russia.

Russia appears to have been supplying North Korea with more than a million barrels of oil, as well as air defence missiles, in exchange for thousands of troops and a steady supply of artillery shells.

The Open Source Centre revealed satellite images which it said proved the Kremlin was breaking international sanctions by sending oil to North Korea.

A “dozen different” North Korean tankers have docked at oil terminals in Russia’s far east 43 times since March, according to the imagery shared with the BBC.

The secret transfers violate UN sanctions, which bar countries from selling oil to North Korea in an attempt to prevent the development of its nuclear weapons programme.

“While Kim Jong-un is providing Vladimir Putin with a lifeline to continue his war, Russia is quietly providing North Korea with a lifeline of its own,” said Joe Byrne from the UK-based Open Source Centre (OSC).

The tankers switch off their tracking devices as they sail to Russia’s Vostochny Port, load up with oil and then return to North Korea.

The OSC estimated the volume of oil transfers to be around a million barrels so far by assessing how low the North Korean tankers sat in the sea after loading up.

North Korea, widely considered a pariah state, is not allowed to buy more than 500,000 barrels of oil on the open market, which is far below what it needs and makes Russian supplies vital for Kim.

“This steady flow of oil gives North Korea a level of stability it hasn’t had since these sanctions were introduced,” Mr Byrne explained.

The UN banned North Korea from buying oil on the open market in 2017 after it test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile.

Oil is critical for Kim’s military. Previously he had been forced to rely on a criminal network to receive supplies. These are often transferred from ship to ship in a risky manoeuvre on the open seas.

Russia has also supplied air defence missile systems to Pyongyang in exchange for sending North Korean troops to support Russia’s war against Ukraine, a top South Korean official said on Friday.

“It has been identified that equipment and anti-aircraft missiles aimed at reinforcing Pyongyang’s vulnerable air defence system have been delivered to North Korea,” Shin Won-sik, Seoul’s top security advisor, told local broadcaster SBS.

Russia also appears to have provided Kim Jong-un with financial and technological support for its space programme following a failed spy satellite launch earlier this year, Mr Shin added, a claim corroborated by Western intelligence.

Analysts fear that Russia may decide to transfer sophisticated weapons technology to enhance North Korea’s nuclear-capable missiles, although they say Moscow is unlikely to do this in the initial stage of Pyongyang’s troop deployment.

Earlier this week, Seoul said Pyongyang had transferred more than 13,000 containers of artillery, missiles and other conventional arms to Russia since August 2023 to replenish its diminishing stock piles.

Kim’s artillery deliveries to Russia are credited with helping Putin’s armies overwhelm Ukrainian forces along the frontline.

Experts say that North Korean artillery shells are often poorly manufactured, the sheer volume has been deadly.

Now, in Russia’s southern Kursk region, an estimated 12,000 North Korean conscripts have joined Moscow’s troops fighting Ukrainian soldiers in their foothold inside Russia.

A high-ranking general has become the first senior North Korean military figure to be wounded fighting against Ukrainian troops, Western officials told the Wall Street Journal.

He is believed to be injured during a Ukrainian attack on a Russian command centre in Kursk using British-made Storm Shadow missiles on Wednesday.

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