Russia has reverted to using North Korean missiles in its war with Ukraine, it was reported on Thursday, July 29th.
A family was killed close to the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, struck by what was probably the first such a weapon fired in nearly a year of the war.
The overnight attack points to Moscow acquiring a fresh stock of the armaments from its East Asian ally. Since 2024, the Hermit Kingdom has reportedly deployed troops to Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky recently asserted that a further 30,000 troops had been requested from Pyongyang by Russia, reinforcements that would replace up to 6,000 reported North Korean casualties.
Officially, the recent missile strikes are the first time since August 8th, 2025, that Ukraine confirmed Russia using a North Korean weapon, likely either a KN-23 or KN-24 short-range ballistic missile, in use against Ukraine since late 2023.
The recognised reappearance of such weapons in the conflict adds to an already difficult week for Ukraine, in which at least 10 people were killed in a ballistic missile strike on an exhibition near Kyiv showcasing drone technology.
