The Canadian government has moved to introduce sanctions on two individuals and six entities over Russian-North Korean cooperation, the Canadian Foreign Ministry said.

"Today's sanctions target individuals and entities that facilitated the illegal transportation of weapons, including ballistic missiles, from North Korea to Russia. There is recorded evidence that these weapons were used by the Kremlin to conduct its war of aggression against Ukraine in 2023 and 2024. Not only is Russia’s attack on Ukraine illegal, but the procurement of weapons it is using contravenes UN Security Council resolutions related to North Korea. These resolutions expressly prohibit all UN Member States from procuring arms and related materiel from North Korea," the ministry said in a press release.

Such shipments are inconsistent with UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting all UN member states from acquiring weapons and miscellaneous goods from Pyongyang, the document said.

"The two individuals sanctioned today are senior representatives of Russian enterprises that are closely linked with the Russian military and involved in the transportation of weapons from North Korea to Russia. The six entities sanctioned today are Russian shipping companies that own, manage and/or operate planes and cargo vessels that were used to facilitate and complete arms transfers from North Korea to Russia," it said.

The measures announced today seek to undermine Russia's ability to acquire North Korean weapons which are used to advance its military objectives in its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine. The Canadian sanctions follow similar steps taken by the United States, Britain, the European Union, Australia, and New Zealand, it said.

Since 2014, Canada has sanctioned, citing the Ukraine situation, around 3,000 individuals and legal entities based in Russia, Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine. Since 2022, Ottawa has provided more than $14 billion in economic, security, humanitarian, development and immigration assistance to Ukraine.