New Delhi: Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, claimed that North Korea has provided up to 40 per cent of munitions used by Russia in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, which is an illustration of the growing military relationship between Moscow and Pyongyang. This statement came soon after Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov embarked on a three-day official visit to North Korea on July 11, 2025, a trip that witnessed the still-existing diplomatic interaction between both countries. According to Mr Budanov, in a video interview with Bloomberg, North Korea has supplied large volumes of ballistic missiles and artillery weapons to Russia over the last few months and plays an essential supporting role in strengthening the Russian war effort.
Relations between Russia and North Korea have deepened significantly since June 2024, when the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty was signed by President Vladimir Putin and General Secretary Kim Jong Un after the first visit by Mr Putin to Pyongyang in 24 years. Since the accord, North Korea has been allegedly sending thousands of military forces and millions of rounds of ammunition to aid Russian forces, especially helping with the reoccupation of some of the territories in the Russian Kursk region which had been taken over by the Ukrainian military. She has reaffirmed her commitment publicly to supporting Russia in an unconditional way, which has made the western world worried.
In the interim, President Donald Trump of the United States has approved the supply of vital air defence systems and other weapons to Ukraine in frustration at the behaviour of Russia. In his latest address, President Trump lashed out at President Putin, charging that he is unnecessarily causing civilian deaths and hindering peace talks. Trump remarked that Putin is operating unfairly and that he’s killing a lot of people. “It’s getting very old,” he added, referring to the Kremlin’s ongoing propaganda offensive. This change of tone comes after months of peace efforts by Mr Trump, which have gone nowhere.
Mr Budanov underlined that within 2025, there must be an end to hostilities before the year ends, claiming that this was a practical and a required outcome. “Achieving this outcome”, he insisted, “requires the involvement of duty Ukraine, Russia, and the United States—and we will get there.” But in his latest call with Mr Trump, under a Kremlin readout, Mr Putin again made clear that Russia would not back down on its goals. The degeneration of hostilities: On July 9, 2025, Russia launched 728 drones, which demolished residential areas and infrastructure. According to the report of the United Nations, no month in three years had fewer civilian casualties in Ukraine than June 2025, when 232 were killed and 1,343 were injured