Moscow’s defense minister Sergei Shoigu tried to “convince Pyongyang to sell artillery ammunition to Russia” during his visit to North Korea last month, the U.S. and three other countries alleged on Wednesday, stating that arms negotiations are “actively advancing.”

Washington’s Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield made the accusation in a joint statement delivered on behalf of the U.S., South Korea, Japan and the U.K., condemning “Russia’s continued pursuit of weapons from the DPRK.” 

The statement asserted that potential deals between Russia and North Korea “could also include the provision of raw materials that would assist Russia’s defense industrial base.”