White House officials are raging with North Korea after they were caught supplying weapons to Russia.
US intelligence believes North Korea are secretly giving artillery shells to Russia in order to help them in Ukraine after initially denying any involvement in the war.
North Korea were trying to hide the shipments destination by making it appear the weapons were being sent to the Middle East or North Africa.
The shipments have included drones and weapons purchased from Iran which shows further evidence Russia's weapons have been seriously depleted since their invasion of Ukraine.
The revelation comes just months after the US intelligence said Russia was trying to buy millions of weapons and rockets from North Korea to help them on the battlefield.
National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby said in a statement: “In September, the (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) publicly denied that it intended to provide ammunition to Russia.
“However, our information indicates that the DPRK is covertly supplying Russia’s war in Ukraine with a significant number of artillery shells, while obfuscating the real destination of the arms shipments by trying to make it appear as though they are being sent to countries in the Middle East or North Africa.”
The declassified intelligence did not say how many weapons were in the shipments or how they were being paid for.
Mr Kirby added: “We will continue to monitor whether these shipments are received.”
The US administration believe the shipment is a sign of Russia running out of weapons as they are being forced to contact countries such as Iran and North Korea for help.
Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said it was evidence the sanctions on Russia were having an affect on them as “export controls are forcing Russia to turn to countries like Iran and North Korea for supplies, including UAVs, artillery shells and rockets.”
She stated just last week Russia's support from North Korea and Iran is “not going to change the course of the war.”
The administration confirmed the US remain committed to providing Ukraine with military aid.
Defence experts believe Russia turning to North Korea and Iran is a potentially significant moment in the war.
Michael Kofman, the director of the Russia Studies Program at the Center for Naval Analyses, told CNN the Russian arm is getting through weapons at an alarming rate.
He said: “It could be significant development because one of the challenges for Russia has been sustaining artillery fire.
“The Russian army has likely gone through millions of shells at this point.”
US officials confirmed they will look to stop the shipments to Russia from North Korea and Iran and will target the network behind the supplies.
