Russia turns to Pyongyang to bolster its combat capabilities: UK statement to the OSCE
At Forum for Security Co-operation/Permanent Council meeting, Deputy Ambassador Brown condemns Russia’s use of DPRK troops into Ukraine and implications for regional stability.
Thank you, Chairs and good afternoon colleagues. Thank you for the opportunity to debate the important topic of involvement by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in Russia’s illegal war of aggression.
Chairs, Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been ongoing for nearly 1,000 days. This regrettable landmark is a damning indictment of the hubris with which President Putin initiated his war against Ukraine, which he thought he would win within days. But more importantly it is also a testament to the bravery and fortitude that the people of Ukraine have demonstrated in defending against this violent, illegal and unprovoked invasion of their internationally recognised sovereign territory.
The tragic effects of this war on the population of Ukraine are well-documented, and the UK will continue to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice. President Putin’s war of choice has also taken a massive toll upon his own country, with profound inflationary effects on the Russian economy, and devastating losses in material and manpower incurred by the Russian military. With those killed and wounded now upwards of 650,000, and Russia finding it ever harder to find people willing to be sent to their deaths in Ukraine, the Russian military has turned to Pyongyang to bolster its combat capability.
This concerning development has significant implications, first and foremost, for the war in Ukraine but also for Europe, the Korean Peninsula, the Indo-Pacific region and the wider world. DPRK is already providing significant support to Russia’s full-scale invasion against Ukraine through the supply of munitions, arms and other materiel - the provision of which is in direct violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions. Resolutions that Russia itself supported.
Russia’s training and deployment of DPRK troops into the combat zone with Ukraine, is a significant step further for both countries, which exposes the growing reliance of the Russian military upon third country support. The DPRK will exact a heavy price for such support, likely to include military assistance and access to additional technical and military insights. Such access to improved military technology, and enhanced capacity to export weapons, could fuel instability in the Korean peninsula and vulnerable conflict areas around the world.
The UK remains determined in our resolve to support Ukraine in line with the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act to protect its people, defend its sovereignty, and emerge from this war as a strong and secure nation able to deter itself against future threats. Thank you, Chairs.