According to the South Korean Ministry of Defense, the DPRK has transferred about 200 long-range artillery units and additional troops to Russia.

South Korean Yonhap news agency reported on that, citing a briefing for the country’s parliamentary defense committee.

The defense ministry has estimated that North Korea has supplied about 11,000 soldiers, ballistic missiles, 200 long-range artillery pieces, and a significant amount of ammunition to support the Russian intervention.

“There is a possibility of further support with troops, weapons, and ammunition in the future,” the Ministry of Defense stated.

Currently, only North Korean long-range howitzers M1989 Koksan are known to have been delivered, and their transportation by Russian rail was first recorded last December.

“On January 7, Militarnyi reported that these systems had arrived at the front. In the video of a Russian soldier, a Korean self-propelled artillery system is deployed in a camouflaged firing position.

This artillery system uses a rather unique 170-mm caliber, which, in combination with a long barrel, provides a long range.

According to available data, the range of conventional shells from this self-propelled gun is up to 40 kilometers, while for active-reactive munitions, this figure is close to 60 kilometers. The probable rate of fire is 1-2 shots every 5 minutes.

Technology in exchange for weapons

The South Korean ministry has stated that this year it expects the DPRK to double its development of sophisticated weapons, such as nuclear submarines, reconnaissance satellites, and solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The main reason for this rapid development is the possibility of receiving technological assistance from Russia in exchange for military support.

In particular, recently, the Japanese edition of NHK WORLD-JAPAN, citing sources familiar with Russian-North Korean relations, announced that Russia was helping to develop several types of drones.

Later this year, on the basis of the transferred technologies, it is planned to deploy mass production of these drones in the DPRK.

According to the newspaper, the agreement on the development of drones was Russia’s response to the DPRK’s deployment of a military contingent in the Kursk region and participation in battles against the Ukrainian Defense Forces.