Ukrainian defense officials say a special North Korean missile detachment has started to deploy in western Russia, where they are expected to operate between 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers and attack Ukraine.

Andrii Cherniak, the spokesman for Ukraine’s main intelligence directorate, said Moscow is considering deploying the group of some 90 North Korean officers in its 112th Missile Brigade in the Voronezh region.

The move is a significant expansion of the military pact between Moscow and Pyongyang. U.S. officials confirmed they were aware of the movements, but White House officials did not give details of the operation.

Escalating Military Ties and Air Defense Vulnerabilities

Pyongyang has already sent over a new batch  of 40 KN-23 and KN-24 ballistic missiles, plus some technical personnel, to Russia, and the last deployment set ups—like the final configurations—will be worked through and finished during the bilateral talks next month.

It comes on the heels of Russian resuming the use of North Korea’s arms, such as the recent attack on the village of Radushne, in which five family members were killed. “KN-23 and KN-24 missiles have larger payloads and longer range compared to Russia’s Iskander missiles, but are far less accurate, creating significant threats to civilian populations,” military analysts note.

The delivery of ballistic technology directly addresses Ukraine’s biggest problem – the lack of advanced interceptors, including Patriot systems provided by the U.S. Department of Defense. Ukrainian energy infrastructure may face significant threats from the increased use of ballistic barrages, which could affect cities during winter, defense experts caution.

Since they signed a mutual defense pact in 2024, cooperation has been rapidly expanding between both countries. Since then, North Korea has supplied millions of munitions, and even, in the past, provided thousands of troops to help the Russians in their fight in the border area of the Kursk region, which has been condemned by countries all over the world, at the UN.

Approximately 9,500 North Korean troops are still in Kursk. In parallel, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia’s logistical forces are actively preparing to transport up to 30,000 more North Korean troops to the Voronezh region, as part of its ongoing war against Ukraine.