Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told his North Korean counterpart that their countries were working to establish a “new and righteous world order”, after Pyongyang helped Moscow to drive Ukrainian forces from a Russian region last year.

In a message to North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, Lavrov also reaffirmed Moscow’s pledge to boost cooperation in all areas and contribute to regional and international security, North Korea’s KCNA news agency said yesterday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent an estimated 14,000 soldiers to Russia in late 2024 to help Moscow beat back a major Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region. Russian President Vladimir Putin declared victory in May 2025 and publicly thanked Pyongyang for its help.

Russia warned Britain on Monday it would pay a ‘price’ for its support for Ukraine, including the reported supply of drones used in strikes.

North Korea and Russia are continuing to establish a “new and righteous world order on the basis of genuine equality and national interests,” KCNA quoted Lavrov as saying in his message.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said yesterday Britain will support Ukraine “100%” against Russia and remain at its side “in its hour of need”, after Moscow warned London of “consequences” for supplying drones to Kyiv.

Russia accused Britain of deepening its involvement in the war following a report by the Times newspaper on Saturday that British-made drones had been used for long-range strikes against Russia for the first time.

“London’s actions will inevitably carry consequences for which it will have to answer,” the embassy said in a statement posted on its Telegram channel earlier yesterday.

A Russian attack on a village in the Kharkiv region of northeast Ukraine killed 10 people, Kyiv said yesterday, vowing to respond.

The strike comes amid a surge in civilian deaths in the four-and-a-half-year war. Russian forces “carried out a rocket strike on Pechenigy”, a village around 40 kilometres from the Russian border, Kharkiv regional governor Oleg Synegubov said on social media.