Russia could receive up to 150 North Korean missiles to boost its military strike capacity against Ukraine, Ukrainian military expert Serhiy Zghurets said during a broadcast on Ukrainian news channel Espreso TV.
Zghurets stated that active discussions are currently taking place regarding the potential supply of approximately 150 North Korean missiles to Russian forces. He noted that even if the weapons perform differently from declared specifications, such a delivery would provide a substantial addition to Russia's stockpiles.
North Korea has continued to strengthen Russia's military potential by transferring various types of missiles, specifically including KN-23, KN-24, and KN-30 variants. Moscow has increasingly relied on foreign weapons imports to sustain its ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Disputed missile specifications
Zghurets urged a critical view of claims surrounding the KN-30, a short-range ballistic missile system that has been credited with a flight range of up to 900 kilometres and a warhead weighing 2.5 tonnes. He argued that those two technical figures are unlikely to be combined in a single operational missile.
He explained that a missile designed to travel 900 kilometres would require a significantly smaller warhead weight. If the missile carries a 2.5-tonne payload, he added, its maximum striking distance will be substantially lower.
Low precision and civilian threat
Targeting precision presents another critical flaw in the North Korean arsenal. Zghurets highlighted estimates indicating that missiles launched toward targets roughly 800 kilometres away could miss by up to 18 kilometres.
Because of this inaccuracy, Zghurets said it is impossible to speak of genuine operational precision, but Russian forces will nevertheless want the missiles to serve as terror weapons that supplement their strike inventory.
His warnings align with earlier comments by aviation expert Bohdan Dolintse, who stated that poor accuracy combined with heavy warheads makes the North Korean missiles extremely dangerous for civilian populations. Dolintse cautioned that these technical limitations effectively transform the rockets into indiscriminate weapons when launched at populated areas.
