John Kirby
The White House stated Thursday that North Korea gave Russia ballistic missiles and missile launchers used in recent attacks on Ukraine, signaling a significant increase in Moscow’s backing.
According to the report, Russia is also hunting for missiles from its ally Iran as it runs out of weapons nearly two years into President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The White House’s remarks came as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for an increase in missile launcher production in preparation for a military showdown with South Korea and the United States.
US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stated, “Russia used Pyongyang-supplied missiles with ranges of roughly 900 kilometres (550 miles) in two attacks on Ukraine during the last week”.
“Our information indicates that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea recently provided Russia with ballistic missile launchers and several ballistic missiles”, Kirby continued.
He went on to say, “This is a significant and concerning escalation of the DPRK’s support for Russia”.
“The incident highlights the need for the US Congress to pass a package of critical military aid for Ukraine, without which the support pipeline will soon run dry”, Kirby noted.
“Air defenses for Ukraine, which has come under a barrage of aerial attacks by Russia in recent days, were a priority”, Kirby explained.
“It’s critical that Congress meets this moment and responds by providing the Ukrainians what they need to defend themselves”, he continued.
According to the spokesman, Russian forces launched at least one of the North Korean-supplied missiles on December 30, which fell in an open field in the Zaporizhzhia area.
“Moscow’s forces then fired several ballistic missiles into Ukraine as part of a mass aerial attack on January 2”, Kirby added.
Also read: South Korea Issues Evacuation Order After North Korea Fires Over 200 Artillery Shells
