South Korea's military says North Korea has likely provided Russia with about 2,000 containers of weapons and munitions, possibly including short-range ballistic missiles.

South Korean military officials on Thursday released an assessment of Pyongyang's military support for Moscow.

They said there have been indications of North Korea supplying weapons to Russia since mid-2022, and the arms trade via maritime routes increased in August. This was shortly before the summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The officials said that about 2,000 containers may have been shipped from North Korea's northeastern port of Rajin to a port in Russia's Far East.

They said this is the equivalent of more than 200,000 rounds of 122 mm artillery shells or over one million rounds of 152 mm shells, which are used by both North Korea and Russia.

Rocket launchers, portable surface-to-air missiles and anti-tank missiles may also have been supplied.

The officials point to the possibility that Pyongyang may have provided Moscow with short-range ballistic missiles.

The South Korean military says military cooperation between North Korea and Russia should be stopped as it clearly violates UN Security Council resolutions and threatens the peace and stability of the world and the Korean Peninsula.