Putin has paid Kim Jong Un billions for fighters and weapons, yet North Korea is now defenseless against its neighbors, reports The New York Times.

The deployment of troops to the war against Ukraine has provided North Korea with much-needed funds, support, and diplomatic leverage for its authoritarian regime. The leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, has embarked on a "bold diplomatic adventure" by sending approximately 11,000 soldiers to Russia and supporting the Russian Federation in the war with weaponry, according to The New York Times. However, this boldness comes with risks for North Korea, the publication argues.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly paid Kim Jong Un up to $6 billion for the supply of weapons and the dispatch of North Korean soldiers, NYT reports. The Seoul-based Hanguk Foreign Studies Institute estimates that the value of arms supplied by Pyongyang ranges from $1.72 billion to $5.5 billion. Some of these supplies were paid for in cash, while others were compensated with oil and even food supplies.

For sending between 5,000 to 20,000 soldiers, North Korea could receive an additional $143 million to $572 million from Russia. Moreover, North Korea has received (or will receive) modern weaponry from the Russian Federation and, as experts believe, even nuclear technologies.

All of this will help Kim's regime withstand international sanctions and modernize its conventional armed forces, which analysts say Kim "desperately needed." These amounts are substantial by North Korean standards, analysts emphasize. For instance, the official export of the country last year amounted to only $330 million.

Three Main Risks for Kim Jong Un

North Koreans fighting for Russia have been the top topic in recent months. However, South Korean officials remind that North Korea has also supplied Russia with 20,000 cargo containers filled with weapons, including millions of artillery shells, newly developed ballistic missiles, multiple launch rocket systems, and long-range artillery.

This is a plus for Russia but a minus for North Korea, notes NYT. North Korea has already sent so much conventional weaponry and ammunition to Russia that "it can no longer wage a war in Korea, even if it wanted to," says Du Jin-ho, a senior analyst at the Korean Institute for Defense Analyses in Seoul. Kim Jong Un is currently at his most vulnerable, he emphasizes.

In addition, North Korea is "opening up," providing information to its neighbors, who are drawing conclusions about the actual combat capabilities of Kim's militant regime—and these are not favorable for North Korea. South Korean officials are closely monitoring how North Korean weapons and troops are performing in the war. North Korea's neighbors have already concluded that many North Korean artillery shells fired decades ago have become unusable.

The third downside is that some analysts say the deepening military ties between North Korea and Russia could harm its relations with China. North Koreans are much more dependent on the PRC than on the Russian Federation.

It is worth noting that the mutual assistance treaty signed by Russian leader Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in June 2024 came into effect on December 4. Following this, the Commander of the U.S. Armed Forces in the Pacific region, Admiral Samuel John Paparo, stated that Russia would also transfer MiG-29 and Su-27 aircraft to North Korea in exchange for support of North Korean troops in the war against Ukraine. Although these fighters do not belong to the fifth-generation aircraft category, they still represent powerful weaponry.

North Korea's Involvement in the War in Ukraine

North Korea has taken the side of Russia in the war against Ukraine. It is not only supplying weapons to the aggressor country but is also sending its soldiers to bolster the Russian army. There is no dialogue with countries supporting Ukraine. Kim Jong Un has even accused the U.S. of provoking tensions globally.

It is known that Putin and Kim Jong Un signed a document regarding military support. North Korea is a relatively small country, but its army is nearly as large as Russia's. Therefore, this fact should not be overlooked, as it could send between 10,000 to 100,000 troops to Ukraine. This would pose a significant challenge for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Currently, about 20,000 North Korean soldiers are fighting on the side of Russia. They have been seen both in the Kursk region of Russia and in temporarily occupied Mariupol. They are dressed in Russian army uniforms but are kept separate from the Russians. They have not only different living quarters but also different food and entertainment. They appear to be "technical advisors" rather than ordinary soldiers.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has promised to "steadfastly" support Russia in the war against Ukraine. On November 29, a meeting took place between Kim and Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov. At its conclusion, the parties reached a consensus on strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries.

On October 23, Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, stated that North Korea is not assisting Russia for charitable reasons. The expansion of cooperation is a result of the mutual assistance treaty signed by Russian leader Vladimir Putin with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in June 2024.

This involves Russian money and know-how in exchange for South Korean people and missiles. According to the chief intelligence officer, Russia is helping North Korea circumvent sanctions and strengthen its nuclear potential. He believes that Moscow is transferring some technologies to Pyongyang specifically for tactical low-yield nuclear weapons and underwater missile launch systems.