NorthKorean missile unit deploys in Russia for Ukraine war: Kyiv

A North Korean missile unit has begun deploying to western Russia and could be equipped with 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers for strikes against Ukraine, an official at Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said.Ukraine is very short of high-end air defenses and Russia has tried to exploit this by using more ballistic missiles, which are particularly hard to shoot down.Russia has fired scores of North Korean ballistic missiles at Ukraine since late 2023, but the deployment of North Korean missile forces would be an expansion of the already extensive military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang.Andrii Cherniak of Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence said Russia planned to base the missile unit of around 90 North Korean personnel in the western Russian region of Voronezh, within its 112th Missile Brigade.Pyongyang has already sent a new batch of 40 KN-23 and KN-24 missiles and personnel to Russia, but the configuration of the deployment and total number of missiles will be finalized at top-level talks next month, he said.Russia expects the deployment to involve 120 North Korean ballistic missiles and six launchers, he said.It is not clear what precise role the North Koreans would play in Russian missile operations.The deployment described by Cherniak appears to coincide with Russia last week firing its first two North Korean missiles at Ukraine since last August.Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a Philadelphia-based think tank, said the North Korean resources were a significant threat for Kyiv.“Ballistic missile defense is one of Ukraine’s greatest vulnerabilities so any increase in the quantities of ballistic missiles they face will pose a greater challenge,” he said.A particularly big concern for Ukraine will be the state of its air defenses this winter, when Russia could again target the power grid with heavy attacks as in past years, he added.Reuters could not independently verif...