Half of Russian-Launched North Korean Missiles in Ukraine Failed Midair

The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine provided Reuters with a commentary, stating that about half of the North Korean missiles launched by Russia at Ukraine failed to reach their targets.
They also emphasized the high malfunction rate observed in these missile launches.

In total, prosecutors examined the wreckage of 21 of the approximately 50 North Korean ballistic missiles that Russia used to strike Ukraine between late December 2023 and late February 2024.

“About half of the North Korean missiles went off the programmed trajectory and exploded in the air, in such cases, no wreckage was found,” the Prosecutor General’s Office stated.

They also added that the last recorded launch of a North Korean KN-23 missile at Ukraine was on February 27, 2024.

The total number of detected launches coincides with intelligence reports that North Korea has supplied Russia with about 50 ballistic missiles.

Three missiles were fired at Kyiv and its surrounding areas. The other targets were Kharkiv, Poltava, Donetsk and Kirovohrad regions.

The attacks by North Korean weapons, which began on December 30, 2023, killed 24 people in Ukraine, injured 115, and damaged residential buildings and industrial facilities.

According to the General Prosecutor Office, about 50 missiles were launched from the western regions of Russia – Belgorod, Voronezh, and Kursk.

At the same time, Ukraine is still investigating whether Pyongyang has sent instructors to Russia to monitor missile launches.

Earlier this year, the White House announced that Russia had received ballistic missiles from North Korea. U.S. President Joe Biden claimed that the Russian invaders had already used such weapons to strike Ukraine.

In particular, one of the North Korean missiles fell into a field in the Zaporizhzhia region. Another missile could have hit the Bucha district of Kyiv region, causing a large crater to appear there.