What is known about Russia's use of North Korean ballistic missiles against Ukraine?

Russia has used North Korean ballistic missiles in its war against Ukraine, according to official US and Ukrainian assessments. Here is what is known.

Official confirmation and physical evidence

• An unclassified Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report confirmed that North Korean missile debris was found throughout Ukraine and that Russia used ballistic missiles produced in North Korea in its war against Ukraine [1][59][60].
• DIA analysts used open-source imagery to identify debris found in Kharkiv on January 2, 2024, as debris from a North Korean short-range missile, and the report says the debris is almost certainly from a North Korean ballistic missile [61][62].
• The DIA report also highlights the evolving, strengthening relationship between North Korea and Russia [63].
• A research expert told the UN that ballistic missile remnants found in Ukraine "irrefutably" came from North Korea [86].
• A May 2025 report by the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team found that Moscow is using North Korean weapons in attacks on Ukraine's critical infrastructure and civilian population [8][36].

Which missiles and how many

• Pyongyang has supplied Russia with KN-23 and KN-24 missiles, which are solid-fuel tactical short-range ballistic missiles [21].
• The KN-23 is often compared to Russia's Iskander missile. Reported characteristics include a range of about 300 to 400 miles [22], a warhead weighing about 500 kg [22], warheads of up to one tonne [49], an estimated range of 800 km, and a rear diameter of 110 cm that Ukraine says is not found on any other country's missiles [80][72].
• The KN-24 is a smaller missile with a roughly 250-mile range, fired from a multiple-launch rocket system and similar to the US-made ATACMS [23]. It has been recorded hitting targets at 400 to 410 km [81].
• North Korea also supplied more than 140 Hwasong-11 series short-range ballistic missiles, and parts from one were discovered after a Russian strike in January 2024 [50].
• Reported supply numbers vary. North Korea has reportedly supplied Russia with around 150 ballistic missiles since late 2023 [7][35]. Ukraine's military spy agency accused Pyongyang of supplying 148 KN-23 and KN-24 missiles [26][47]. North Korea is also estimated to have provided nearly 250 KN-23 missiles since 2023 [82], and a US congressional source said North Korea supplied at least 100 ballistic missiles in 2024 [87].

Deployments and strikes

• A Ukrainian intelligence official said Moscow recently deployed 120 KN-23/KN-24 ballistic missiles, six launchers, and ninety North Korean military personnel in Russia's western Voronezh region [6][34][67][89].
• Kyiv also warned of a new wave of North Korean troop deployments and transfers of North Korean ballistic missile launchers to Russia [15].
• North Korean ballistic missiles were first used against Ukrainian positions at the end of 2023 [46].
• The US government said North Korean ballistic missiles were deployed against Ukraine on December 30 and January 2, and the White House said Russia had used North Korean short-range ballistic missiles in multiple strikes, citing declassified intelligence corroborated by a senior Ukrainian official [100][101].
• Debris from the January 2, 2024, strike on Kharkiv was identified as part of a North Korean KN-23 missile by Ukrainian authorities and military engineers [10][39][71][72].
• A deadly Russian attack on Kyiv involved a missile that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said was supplied by North Korea. The attack killed 12 people and injured at least 90, and the missile was reportedly a KN-23 that hit a residential block [42][43][45][48].
• Ukraine said strikes on Zaporizhzhia that killed seven people and injured at least 24 involved ballistic missiles from North Korea [52]. A reported August 11, 2026, strike on Zaporizhzhia included a North Korean ballistic missile and Zircon hypersonic missiles [38][94].
• In another reported August 11 attack, Zelenskyy said a North Korean missile was used, ten Ukrainian civilians were killed, and none of the missiles were intercepted [9][37][68][93].
• Ukrainian authorities also reported a Russian-operated North Korean ballistic missile striking a family home in the village of Radushne, killing family members including children [13][17]. The house was leveled, and four more children were missing [18]. Zelenskyy said the North Korean missile was used by Russia "for the first time in a while" and that more examinations would follow [19][20]. It is unclear whether that missile came from a new shipment or had improved features [29].
• Ukraine's military has said that dozens of North Korean missiles have been fired by Russia into Ukraine since February 2022 [57].

Impact on Ukraine's air defenses

• North Korean ballistic missile transfers are tightening the Moscow-Pyongyang partnership and helping Russia's campaign to overwhelm Ukraine's depleted air defenses [2][4][40][90].
• Analysts say the ballistic missiles may prove more consequential than North Korean troop transfers in the battle for Ukraine's skies [3].
• Ukraine lacks an adequate supply of higher-end interceptors to counter Russia's growing use of ballistic missiles, and Moscow sometimes launches these missiles by the dozen alongside long-range drones [32].
• Even with outdated technologies, the North Korean missiles are very difficult for air defenses to intercept and pose a deadly threat to civilians [76].
• Ukraine's military reported shooting down 35 KN-23 or Iskander missiles in February, and said it destroyed 274 Iskander/KN-23 missiles since the start of the war [78][79].

Reliability and technical findings

• Local officials said the North Korean munitions were highly unreliable, with roughly half detonating midair before reaching their targets [27].
• Ukraine's defense ministry researchers concluded that the KN-23 and KN-24 are not direct copies of Soviet or Russian designs. Instead, they combine foreign technology with refinements of earlier Iskander versions [70][73][74].
• The North Korean missiles reportedly use lower-energy fuel and larger engines to reach a comparable range [75].
• Ukraine's defense ministry described the KN-23 as built with manufacturing methods from 50 years ago and called it a "poorer cousin" to the Iskander-M [28].
• However, Kyiv also assessed that the North Korean missiles showed rapid improvement in quality and accuracy after being used in strikes on Ukrainian targets [83].
• Because the missiles look similar to the Iskander, Ukraine often refers to them in public alerts using the joint name "Iskander/KN-23" [77].

Broader North Korean support, denials, and sanctions

• Since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022, North Korea has become one of Russia's most direct backers, providing troops, missiles, ammunition, specialist military personnel, and labor [5][69][91].
• North Korea also supplied Russia with long-range Koksan artillery, 240mm and 107mm multiple-launch rocket systems, mortars, cluster munitions, and tank shells [84].
• Ukraine expects Pyongyang to send another 30,000 troops, after an initial 10,000 to 14,000 or so North Korean soldiers arrived in fall 2024 [31].
• Russia's war machine is described as sustained by an authoritarian supply chain: North Korean missiles, ammunition, and personnel, Iranian drones, and Chinese dual-use equipment [11][41].
• North Korea rejected US intelligence allegations that it supplied weapons to Russia, and Moscow and Pyongyang have denied engaging in any arms deals [58][104].
• UN sanctions prohibit North Korea from exporting arms, and UN Security Council resolutions approved with Russian support ban countries from trading weapons with North Korea [97][103].
• The United States imposed sanctions on three Russian entities and one individual allegedly involved in the transfer and testing of North Korean ballistic missiles for use in Russia's war against Ukraine [99].
• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said North Korea's transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia supports Russia's war of aggression, increases the suffering of the Ukrainian people, and undermines the global nonproliferation regime [102].
• Russia ended the UN North Korean sanctions panel, and was accused of doing so to prevent reporting on Moscow's own violations as it sought North Korean military support [96][98].

One caution: in one address, Zelenskyy did not present public evidence to back up his comments about a particular North Korean missile attack [55]. Other physical and intelligence evidence, including the DIA report and missile debris analysis, still supports the broader finding that Russia has used North Korean ballistic missiles against Ukraine [1][61][62][86].