North Korea is expanding weapons factory for Russian rockets
North Korea is expanding weapons factory for Russian rockets
North Korea is expanding a armaments factory that produces rockets that are used by Russia in the war against Ukraine. This emerges from new research by a American think tank.
production of KN-23 and KN-24 rockets
According to researchers from the James Martin Center for nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, the factory in the coral, the second largest city of North Korea, produces both KN-23 rockets (Hwasong-11a) and KN-24 rockets (Hwasong-11b). North Korea's state media previously emphasized the mass production of these tactical rockets and reports that the North Korean leader Kim Jong and visited the facility several times.
rocket inserts in Ukraine
Recently, Ukraine has been hit by an increase in Russian ballistic rocket attacks, with about a third of these attacks used North Korean weapons, according to Ukrainian military officers.
military cooperation between North Korea and Russia
Moscow and Pyongyang have deepened their military relationships to a level that has not been observed since the Cold War. The measures include a signed North Korean troops in the fight against Ukraine, as Western and South Korean officials report.
Expansion of production capacities
New satellite images indicate that North Korea is expanding the factory in Hamy and building a new part of the building for the final assembly of rockets and creating additional accommodations for workers. Sam Lair, a research employee at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies, told CNN that the expansion of the facility had increased significantly in recent years. The construction started in 2020 and included regular improvements such as repairs of old buildings and the exchange of roofs.
growth of labor
North Korea also seems to increase the number of workers in the facility. According to Lair, the images recorded by the Satellite company Planet Labs in October show that new residential buildings are under construction outside the security area of the factory. "The new assembly buildings are estimated to be 60 % to 70 % as large as the original building," he added.
attacks with KN-23 rockets
This year Russia has about 60 North Korean KN-23 Rakets (Hwasong-11a) fired on Ukraine. At least 28 people were killed in the attacks with North Korean missiles and 213 others were injured, as the Ukrainian Attorney General announced CNN.
international concern about military aid
and European reports show that essential components that are produced by nine western manufacturers are used in the management systems of the KN-23 rockets, including companies from the USA, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Despite this evidence, Moscow and Pyongyang previously contested that North Korea exported weapons to Russia.
In June, the two autocratic states signed a new Defense pact which they committed to use all available funds in order to immediately provide military help in the event of the other's attack. Western officials also warned that thousands of North Korean soldiers strengthen Moscow armed forces, while trying to recapture the region taken by the Military Kyiv as part of a surprise attack this year.
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