The Russians have begun using North Korean war technology against Ukrainian defenders on the front lines. The weapon in question is the self-propelled anti-tank missile system Bulsae-4. Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance detected this weapon in an open area on one of the fronts, Militarnyi media reports.
“In mid-June, Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin traveled to Pyongyang to meet North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un and sign a defense pact between Russia and North Korea. Six weeks later, an apparent North Korean missile vehicle appeared near the front line in southern Russia, just across the border with Ukraine,” writes Forbes.
The Bulsae-4 system is a unique North Korean missile system. It consists of a rotating package of eight missile containers mounted on a North Korean wheeled armored vehicle, the M-2010, with a 6×6 wheel configuration.
Ukrainian aerial surveillance spotted a North Korean Bulsae-4 anti-tank missile system in Kharkiv Oblast.
The Bulsae-4 can engage targets beyond the line of sight at distances exceeding 10 km. Exact specifications are scarce, but some sources estimate the range of North Korean weapons between 10 and 25 kilometers. This allows for attacking armored vehicles from a safe distance for the system itself, Militarnyi reports.
“If North Korea really is providing armored vehicles to Russia, it might help solve one of Russia’s biggest battlefield problems as its wider war on Ukraine grinds toward its 29th month: a shortage of purpose-made combat vehicles. … A Bulsae-4 performs the same mission that Ukraine and Russia’s dismounted anti-tank missile teams perform—defeating enemy tanks—but does it with greater speed, mobility and protection,” Forbes emphasizes.
Details of the defense pact between Russia and North Korea are unknown. However, it is quite possible that the terms include significant transfers of North Korean-produced equipment. “From the Russian perspective, it would make sense. It’s no secret the Russians are struggling to build—or recover from long-term storage—enough combat vehicles to make good the roughly 600 vehicles they lose in Ukraine every month,” Forbes writes.
Until now, North Korea has supported Russia covertly, just as South Korea has supported Ukraine. North Korea has supplied the occupiers with artillery shells and ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, South Korea has sold munitions to the U.S. for further transfer to democratic Ukraine. “Now that North Korea is openly supporting the Russian war effort, South Korea may consider doing the same for Ukraine,” the journalists write.
Cover: KNCA; Kriegsforscher on Twitter
