Russia helps DPRK upgrade KN-23 ballistic missiles, poses challenge to Patriot system - The Times
Russia has helped North Korea modernise its military forces and improve the drones and ballistic missiles used by the aggressor country to attack Ukraine.
According to Censor.NET, The Times reports this with reference to a high-ranking officer of the Ukrainian Air Force.
The military officer said that during the first launch at Ukraine, North Korean missiles missed the target by several miles. Now, however, they are virtually indistinguishable from Russian ballistic missiles in terms of range and accuracy.
The Ukrainian Air Force officer stressed that Russia was actively involved in the modernisation of Korean ballistic missiles.
"They installed a Russian guidance system, a positioning system similar to the one on Iskanders," the Ukrainian officer said.
After that, the missiles became more accurate - the deviation is hundreds of metres.
"They are not Iskanders yet, but they are close to them," the officer said.
For his part, Oleksii Yizhak, a missile expert at the National Institute for Strategic Studies, noted that Korean missiles are now a challenge for the Patriot air defence system.
According to him, each time such missiles are launched, the most modern and expensive air defence systems must be deployed.
"Therefore, they deplete our air defence capabilities. Russia expects to receive 150-200 such missiles this year," the expert said.
