Former Aidar Battalion company commander Yevhen Dykyi has downplayed concerns about the one million artillery shells that North Korea sent to Russia. According to Dykyi, the quality of European or American shells differs greatly from North Korean shells. He pointed out that Russia produces about 1.1 million shells each year, so the number sent by North Korea is not a significant cause for alarm.
Dykyi also provided insight into the effectiveness of North Korean shells, citing an incident where Kim Jong Un ordered 2,400 shells to be fired at a deserted island in 2020. Out of those shells, only 400 reached the target and approximately 80 of them exploded. This suggests that only 4% of the shells fired actually detonated where they were intended to. By multiplying the one million shells sent by North Korea by 4%, Dykyi estimated that only around 40,000 of them would be functional.
He further speculated that North Korean instructors may have accompanied the shells to Russia because Russian artillerymen might be hesitant to use them due to concerns about their reliability. Dykyi suggested that the neighboring defense industry’s “masterpieces” may have exploded within the artillery guns themselves.
According to Bloomberg, North Korea sent over one million artillery shells to Russia, which is expected to supply Russia for approximately two months. Satellite images published by the Washington Post on October 16 show that Russian ships have been picking up cargo from North Korea and delivering it to a Russian military port over the past two months.
In addition to artillery shells, Pyongyang has reportedly supplied Moscow with Katyusha-type rockets. The Yonhap News Agency reported that North Korea may have also provided Russia with short-range ballistic missiles, portable anti-aircraft missiles, T-series tank ammunition, anti-tank guided missiles, rocket launchers, rifles, machine guns, and possibly more short-range ballistic missiles for the ongoing war in Ukraine.
It is worth noting that Dykyi’s statements and the reported supply of weapons from North Korea to Russia have not been independently verified.
