Kim Jong-un seized on Russia’s need for support in its war against Ukraine. His reward is a rapidly modernizing military that threatens the delicate balance of power on the Korean Peninsula.

A top Russian official praised North Korean troops for assisting President Vladimir Putin's military in the Ukraine war. Sergei Shoigu, secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, said the troops deployed by Pyongyang to Russia had fought "valiantly" in the Kursk region,

North Korea has become a crucial source of missiles, munitions and even soldiers for Russia’s war in Ukraine as the sanctions-defying alliance between the two countries intensifies, according to a report by 11 countries,