Russia launched North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukraine - Kirby

During its recent missile attacks on Ukraine, Russia used at least several ballistic missiles that it received from North Korea to circumvent international restrictions.

John Kirby, the National Security Council's coordinator for strategic communications, said this at a briefing on Thursday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"As Russia continues to launch these brutal attacks, the United States has new information to share: about the support that Russia is receiving from third countries," the White House representative said.

One of these countries is North Korea. According to information received by U.S. intelligence, North Korea recently provided Russia with ballistic missile launchers and several ballistic missiles.

"On December 30, 2023, Russian forces launched at least one of these North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukraine. This missile appears to have landed in an open field in the Zaporizhzhia region," Kirby said.

He also added that on January 2, Russia launched multiple North Korean ballistic missiles into Ukraine, including as part of its overnight aerial attack. He noted that the United States was still assessing the impacts of these additional missiles.

In this context, Kirby showed a graphic showing the area from which Russia launched the North Korean-supplied ballistic missiles on those two dates. According to him, the U.S. anticipates that Russian forces will use additional North Korean missiles, which are capable of ranges of approximately 900 kilometers.

In return for its support, Pyongyang is seeking military assistance from Russia, including fighter aircraft, surface-to-air missiles, armored vehicles, ballistic missile production equipment or materials and other advanced technologies, Kirby said. He believes that this would have concerning security complications for the Korean Peninsula and the Indo-Pacific region.