A pair of North Korean spies were caught in 2011 trying to steal missile plans in what turned out to be an elaborate sting operation by the Ukrainian government.
The 2011 footage was shared with CNN as Ukraine pushes back on a New York Times report that says North Korea may have bought advanced propulsion technology on the Russian or Ukrainian black market.
The claims about Pyongyang’s missile technology advances stem from a report released by the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) — which says that advances evidenced in North Korea’s recent missile tests potentially came from Ukraine’s Yuzhnoye Design Office in Dnipro.
The North Korean spies in the footage are currently serving eight-year prison sentences in Ukraine. CNN also reports that five North Koreans were deported for “assisting North Korea’s intelligence work in Ukraine” as recently as 2015.
Ukraine has denied any link to North Korea’s missile program, suggesting that Russia may be involved. Russia has denied supporting North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.