Warning North Korea can produce ballistic missiles for Russia ‘in months’
The IndependentFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy North Korea has demonstrated that it could produce ballistic missiles and supply them to Russia for use against Ukraine in a matter of months, an expert said on Wednesday. The U.K.-based organization, which was established in 2011 to document and trace weapons used in conflicts to assist governments in countering diversion and proliferation, has worked in Ukraine since 2018. open image in gallery Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, speaks during a Security Council meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed his country would “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine when he met Russia’s defense chief in late November, the North’s state media reported. And he accused Thomas-Greenfield of violating Security Council practices and transforming its meetings “into a politicized act of buffoonery.” The U.S. ambassador retorted that Russia had vetoed a resolution that ended the monitoring of sanctions against North Korea by U.N. experts, which she said makes organizations like Conflict Armament Research and its independent, well-regarded experts all the more critical. Leff also said the presence of recently produced missile components not from North Korea, some bearing 2023 production marks, “illustrates North Korea’s robust acquisition network for its ballistic missile program, despite U.N. sanctions prohibiting the transfer of this material for military purpose.”