Ukrainian intelligence director Kirilo Budanov considered, on Saturday, that North Korea is Moscow's most dangerous ally to Kiev because of the huge shipments of artillery shells it sends to Russia for use on the front in Ukraine.

He said at the Yalta European Strategy Conference in Kiev, “Among all Russia’s allies, our biggest problem is North Korea, because with the amount of military equipment it provides, it greatly affects the intensity of the fighting.”

Russian news agencies reported that Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, held talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a visit to Pyongyang on Friday.

The visit comes at a critical time in the war in Ukraine, as the United States says that North Korea has supplied Russia with ammunition and ballistic missiles.

The United States and its allies are considering making a decision about allowing Kiev to use long-range missiles supplied by Western countries to strike lands deep inside Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that if this happened, the West would enter into a direct confrontation with his country.

Moscow and Pyongyang deny the issue of arms transfers, but they have pledged to strengthen military relations. Russia has deepened its relations with North Korea since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, and Kim received Putin on an official visit in June.

The Russian Information Agency said that the meetings between Shoigu and the North Korean leader took place in a “friendly atmosphere characterized by extreme trust” and would make an important contribution to the implementation of the agreements reached between Putin and Kim at their summit three months ago