Russia resumed oil exports to North Korea late last year, according to UN data, as the isolated regimes’ deepening ties drew US warnings that Pyongyang is planning to deliver more weapons to support Vladimir Putin’s war effort in Ukraine.Data released by the UN this week showed Russia supplied 67,300 barrels of refined petroleum to North Korea between December 2022 and April 2023, the first deliveries recorded since September 2020.

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has assiduously curried favour with Putin since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with the leaders offering each other material and political aid.

In a statement marking Russia’s national day on Monday, Kim pledged his “full support” for Putin and called for “closer strategic co-operation” between their countries, according to North Korea’s state news agency.