Russia dey send millions of shells every year to di frontline for Ukraine and constantly launch air attacks on civilian targets – wit ammunitions wey dem say foreign allies dey supply.
While Western nations try to stop Russia capacity to make weapons by imposing sanctions, China, Iran and North Korea dey allegedly help to keep di war machine working.
Drones and missiles from Iran
Dem don recently accuse Iran of striking one deal wit Russia to supply am wit 200 or more short-range ballistic missiles. Wey dem dey call di Fath-360, e get range of 75 miles (120km) and dey carry 150kg of explosives.
US intelligence say dem don train dozens of members of Russia armed forces for Iran to fire dem. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken tok say dem fit deploy di missiles against Ukraine later dis autumn.
Di Fath-360 missiles go enable Russia to hit targets such as Ukrainian cities and power plants wey dey close to di borders, freeing up di longer-range missiles to hit targets deeper inside di kontri.
“Di Fath-360 dey good for striking targets at relatively close quarters,” Dr Marina Miron of di War Studies Department for King’s College London tok. “Russia no get similar missile of dia own.”
Russia fit give Iran military technology in return, possibly including nuclear technology, she tok.
US, UK, France and Germany don impose fresh sanctions on Iran for supplying Russia wit di missiles.
E include restricting Iran Air flights to UK and Europe along wit travel ban and asset freeze on Iranians wey dey involved in di deal.
Iran don repeatedly deny supplying self-guided weapons such as di Fath-360 to Russia.
Ukraine goment and Western intelligence agencies also say Iran don dey supply Russia wit Shahed-136 drones since di autumn of 2022.
Di Shahed get warhead for im nose and e dey designed to hang ova target until dem give dem signal to strike.
Russian forces dey send dozens of dem to try and overpower Ukraine air defences. Sometimes, dem dey use drone swarms as barrier to stop Ukrainian air defences from blocking cruise and ballistic missiles, wey dey pack more explosives and do more damage.
Iran goment say dem supply Russia wit only “small number” of drones bifor di war.
However, di US and di European Union don accuse Iran of sending regular deliveries to Russia, and di EU don impose sanctions on di pipo and firms wey dey involved.
Shells and missiles from North Korea
US Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) say for one report for May 2024 say North Korea don supply Russia wit three million artillery shells.
Artillery na di main weapon wey both sides dey use along di front for Ukraine. E dey prevent di enemy armour and infantry from manoeuvring and advancing.
Di Royal United Services Institute (Rusi), UK-based think tank, tok say in recent months, Russia forces don get 5:1 advantage ova Ukraine in di number of shells wey dey available to fire.
Rusi say dis na one major reason why Russia don gain large amounts of territory for eastern Ukraine since di winter of 2023.
For January 2024, Ukrainian intelligence officers say dem find di wreckage of two types of short-range ballistic missiles wey North korea manufacture wey dem fire on Kharkiv inside large air attack.
Ukrainian authorities tok say one na Hwasong-11, wey pipo sabi as KN-23.
Dis na short-range ballistic missile wit range of between 400km and 690km, e fit carry warheads weighing up to 500kg.
Di UN don sanction trade wit North Korea relating to ballistic missiles since 2006.
Ukrainian intelligence say North Korea don send 50 missiles to Russia and, for one UN Security Council meeting in February 2024, Di US accuse Russia of using North Korean missiles for nine air attacks on Ukraine.
Di DIA say Russia and North Korea begin dey negotiate arms sales for autumn 2022 and di first missiles from North Korea to Russia land for autumn 2023 for testing.
E say Russia begin dey fire dem on Ukraine for January 2024 from across di border.
“Hwasong-11 missiles dey cheaper for Russia to use dan im own short-range missiles such as Iskander,” according to Dr Miron. “Na a cost calculation.
“Also, making arms deals with countries like Iran and North Korea show di West say Russia get allies, and no dey isolated.”
Ballistic missiles like di Hwasong-11 dey hard to intercept because of di supersonic speed at which dem dey descend towards dia target. However, Ukrainian intelligence officials according to reports say many of di missiles from North Korea fail to hit dia targets because of electronic faults wey cause dem to lose dia programmed trajectories.
North Korea don deny sending weapons to Russia, and Russia don deny say dem receive any.
Tori e say Ukrainian intelligence officers say dem sight North Korean soldiers alongside Russian forces for di country. Ukrainian newspapers report saying dem say on 3 October 2024, six North Korean officers die – and three odas injure – inside missile strike on a Russian military training base for di east of di country.
Previous allegations of North Korean troops fighting for Ukraine come up for 2023, wey Russia President Vladimir Putin dismiss as “complete nonsense”.
China and dual-use components
Di leaders of Nato members states don accuse China of being “decisive enabler” of Russia, providing “large-scale support for di defence industrial base”.
Dem tok say e dey provide “dual-use” components such as computer chips wey get civilian applications but wey dem also fit use to make weapons.
Di Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP), US-based think tank, say every month, China dey send Russia $300m of “high priority” dual-use products wey dem fit use to make weapons such as drones, missiles and tanks.
E tok say China sell Russia 70% of all im machine tools (wey dem fit use make weapons casings) and 90% of di supply of microelectronic products such as chips and semiconductors (wey dem fit use for such things as guidance systems in missiles).
Di CEIP say for 2023, Russia import 89% of all im high priority dual-use goods from China. E say bifor di war, Germany and di Netherlands supply most of dem. Wen dem ban dia export to Russia by sanction, China fill di gap.
China don deny helping Russia to build weapons, dem tok say dem na neutral party in di Ukraine war. Dem tok say dem neva provide lethal equipment to Russia and dem don dey careful ova di components dem dey sell.
Di news agency Reuters tok say Russia don set up factory inside China to produce new type of long-range drone wey dem dey call di Garpiya-3.
China goment say dem no dey aware of such project and e get strict controls ova di export of drones, according to Reuters.
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