‘Threat to US security,’ NATO chief’s warning on Russia-North Korea ties, says will discuss with Trump

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) chief Mark Rutte said on Thursday (Nov. 7) that the growing ties between Russia and North Korea are not only a threat to the European part of NATO, but also to the United States. 

"Russia is delivering the latest technology to North Korea in return for North Korean help with the war against Ukraine, and this is a threat not only to the European part of NATO but also to the US," Rutte said before a meeting with European leaders in Budapest.

“What we see more and more is that North Korea, Iran, China, and of course, Russia are working together, working together against Ukraine,” he added.

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Rutte said that he would like to discuss the issue with Donald Trump. 

“I look forward to sit down with Donald Trump to discuss how we can face these threats collectively,” he said. 

Recently, North Korea has become one of the strongest supporters of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Meanwhile, the West has been accusing Pyongyang of supplying artillery shells and missiles to Moscow. 

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The Western powers believe that Pyongyang has deployed around 10,000 troops to Russia, according to intelligence reports. 

Moreover, earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin met North Korea's foreign minister in the Kremlin. A video of the meeting showed the pair shaking hands for a full minute as Putin greeted Choe Son Hui. 

Putin noted that they were meeting on Russia's National Unity Day, a public holiday, and Choe conveyed "sincere, warm, comradely greetings" from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

(With inputs from agencies)