An expert explained why the Russian Federation started striking Ukraine with North Korean missiles.

Russia is increasingly using North Korean missiles for airstrikes against Ukraine.

Military expert Oleksiy Hetman noted that the KN-23 ballistic missile is essentially a copy of the Russian Iskander-M, but of poorer quality. In his comment to RBK-Ukraine, he stated: "The first North Korean missiles used against us did not reach their targets at all. In other words, they are very poor technically. Then there was indeed a Time gap related to the shortcomings discovered during the combat tests on our territory. Now they are trying to test how far these missiles can reach."

The expert noted that it cannot be said that Russia is using the KN-23 missiles because they lack their own weapons. The reasons are different.

"Firstly, when it comes to various ballistic and cruise missiles, Russia produces 100 units per month. At the same time, the Russians still have some remnants of the missiles that were available at the beginning of the full-scale war. This is approximately only 15% of their total. Therefore, this is a reserve they are unlikely to touch." - Oleksiy Hetman explained.

He said that the number of Russian missiles converted into conditional ballistic missiles from the S-300/400 air defense systems is estimated to be between 3,000 and 5,000 units.

"In other words, this is a very large quantity. To say they need North Korean missiles to change the situation is unnecessary. It is more likely a deal between the DPRK leader Kim Jong-un and the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin for missile tests under combat conditions to understand what needs to be improved." - Hetman speculated.

The expert noted that there are various estimates on how many such missiles Pyongyang can hand over to Russia. He does not rule out that it is not dozens but hundreds (from 100 to 500-600 missiles), but no more than 1,000 units. He also agreed that the KN-23 is a kind of copy of the Iskander-M, but worse.

"In terms of technical performance, the Iskander-M is a good missile, we can shoot them down. But if the (KN-23) missiles are worse in their performance, it will be easier for us to shoot them down. Nonetheless, any additional quantity of ballistic missiles for the Russians is advantageous. It's better than nothing. But we should not believe this will cause a significant shift on the front line," - Hetman concluded.