North Korea is expanding its military capabilities by studying the experience of Russia's war in Ukraine — Budanov

27.09.2026, 19:42 rubryka.com

According to Budanov, Pyongyang continues military cooperation with Russia, including by supplying it with:

In addition, North Korea is sending its military personnel to directly participate in the war against Ukraine.

At the same time, the head of the Presidential Office said military cooperation with Russia allows Pyongyang to gain experience of modern warfare and use it to develop its own weapons.

"North Korea is learning from our war and arming itself. The world must see this connection while there is still time. It has long been known that, in addition to supplying weapons and materials to Russia, North Korea is sending its troops to fight directly against Ukraine. At the same time, North Korea is improving its own weapons based on the experience of combat operations in Ukraine. It is also adopting new types of weapons, some of which are Russian-made," Budanov said.

He also spoke about the development of unmanned systems in North Korea. According to Budanov, the country has already established mass production of single-use attack drones.

Budanov believes that such developments do not contribute to stability in the Korean region. He also pointed to the pace of North Korea's militarization and raised the question of why Pyongyang is expanding its military capabilities.

"And when you see how rapidly the North Korean regime is militarizing, the natural question is: why? First and foremost, to be ready for active combat operations in its region," the head of the Presidential Office said.

According to him, there are also signs of growing tensions directly on the Korean Peninsula. Budanov said that a recent incident occurred along the demarcation line between South and North Korea.

"By the way, quite recently, there was another incident along the demarcation line between the Republic of Korea and North Korea. The situation is escalating every day. And it is only a matter of time before a trigger event occurs that could lead to uncontrollable consequences," he added.

As previously reported, North Korea recently sent another 8,500 troops to Russia, including UAV operators. According to Ukrainian intelligence, the new contingent included about 400 drone operators, while around 25,000 North Korean personnel had been deployed to or rotated through the Russian armed forces by that time.

At the same time, North Korea's military support for Russia is not limited to personnel. Pyongyang is also supplying Russia with ammunition and missiles.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, by August 2025, North Korea had supplied Russia with at least 150 KN-23 and KN-24 ballistic missiles, which were used in attacks on Ukraine. Another 120 missiles had reportedly been promised.

In exchange for supplying personnel and ammunition, North Korea requested S-400 air defense systems from Russia. At the same time, Skibitskyi said that North Korea had already received a Russian Pantsir-S1 air defense system.

It is also worth noting that North Korea has built a new uranium enrichment facility at its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon and has begun operating an expanded building at the uranium enrichment facility in Kangson. The IAEA said the developments indicate an expansion of North Korea's capacity to produce weapons-grade nuclear material.