What North Korean missiles is Russia using to attack Ukraine and why international tensions are increasing

It was September 2023 when the leader of North Korea Kim Jong Un visited Russia meet President Vladimir Putin and thus conclude a supposed agreement to weapons according to his Western adversaries.

A few months later, In early 2024, concrete signs began to emerge that Kremlin troops had used North Korean-made missiles to attack. Ukraine .

Khrystyna Kimachuk, weapons inspector with Conflict Armament Research (CAR), was the first to find evidence suggesting Pyongyang’s collaboration with Moscow .

This organization is dedicated to the recovery of weapons used during the war, in order to analyze and know their origin .

Recently, Kimachuk told BBC that January 2 found a projectile with an unusual appearance .

The missile was located in a building in the city of Kharkiv and Her appearance quickly caught his attention. .

After taking the parts to kyiv for inspection, was able to corroborate that it was not a Russian missile .

In fact, he identified a character from the Korean alphabet and the number “112” recorded in some parts. The latter refers to the year 2023 in the North Korean calendar. .

He told the aforementioned media: “We had heard that they had delivered weapons to Russia, but I was able to see them, touch them, and investigate them like no one had been able to before. “.

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s country, Russian troops fired dozens of North Korean-made missiles during their invasion of the territory. .

But the specialist specifies that one of the most worrying points is that the component samples he examined were state-of-the-art .

In fact, he said that Most of the electronic parts were manufactured in the United States and European countries. .

Such characteristics are interpreted as the result of the illicit purchase of key components to make weapons .

The deputy director of the same organization, Damien Spleeters, said that It was “the biggest surprise” .

“Although he has been subject to severe sanctions for almost two decades, North Korea still manages to obtain everything it needs to make its weapons, and at an extraordinary speed. “, declared the CAR representative.

For his part, the specialist on the subject at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), Joseph Byrne, declared: “I never imagined seeing North Korean ballistic missiles being used to kill people on European soil” .

In the aforementioned study center, the expert He is part of a team tracking North Korean arms shipments to Russia. using satellite images.

As specified, Since Kim Jong Un’s visit to Moscow in September 2023, four Russian cargo ships have transited between North Korea and Russian territory. .

Agency estimates indicate that around 7,000 containers were sent with over a million Grad ammunition and rocket casings .

Generally speaking, the latter They are characterized by the fact that they can be fired from military trucks in accelerated bursts. .

Such elements, according to the RUSI specialist, “They are now among the most sought-after objects in the world and allow Russia to continue attacking Ukrainian cities. at a time when the United States and Europe are doubtful about the weapons to bring.”

Your organization’s data were supported by US, UK and South Korean intelligence .

However, Russia and North Korea have denied carrying out any such transactions. .