Russia helps North Korea produce its own Shahed-136 suicide UAV

In an exclusive hour-long interview with The War Zone on June 7, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov, the commander of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency (GUR), gave his clear views on a range of topics, from the state of the war to the progress of Ukraine’s drone campaign against Russia to whether Kyiv would attempt to attack a Russian nuclear submarine. Photo: @ CNA.

And in this conversation, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov gave The War Zone team shocking information that Russia is providing technology and knowledge to help North Korea build its own long-range Shahed-136 suicide drone. This move is understandable, as North Korea has become a major supporter of Russia's war effort, supplying millions of artillery shells and even troops to Russia in return for other Russian support. Photo: @Army Recognition.

The Shahed-136 suicide drone has been the most prominent long-range aerial threat to Ukraine for years. The low-cost, explosive-laden drone has become the main weapon in Russia’s air attacks on Ukraine since it entered service in late 2022. Known for its ability to fly long distances before crashing into its target, they are now being mass-produced by Russia, and launched in waves almost every night to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses. Photo: @Defence Security Asia.

Russia received the first batch of Shahed drones from Iran in 2022. By the summer of 2023, Russia will begin producing the drones domestically. The production facility is being set up 1,200 km from the front line, in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in the city of Yelabuga. Photo: @ Defense Express.

Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency estimates that Russia will reach a daily production rate of around 170 Shahed drones and decoy drones by May 2025, with plans to increase production to 190 per day by the end of the year. Russia is also constantly improving and upgrading the range, payload, connectivity, and attack modes of this formidable weapon. Photo: @ Air Data News.

Now, Russia is providing technology to produce Shahed-136 suicide drones to North Korea so that the country can produce them domestically, which will certainly bring certain changes in the regional military balance between North Korea and South Korea. Photo: @ Sketchfab.

Possessing the Shahed-136 suicide drones would give North Korea the ability to strike targets anywhere in South Korea, and in large numbers. They could overwhelm South Korea’s air defenses, opening the way for attacks with other munitions. Photo: @ Defence Security Asia.

As North Korea is self-sufficient in receiving this technology and producing it itself, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov also does not rule out the possibility that this drone is assembled in North Korea and can then be transferred back to Russia for use in the war against Ukraine. Photo: @ Defense Express.

In addition, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov revealed that the first batch of KN-23 short-range ballistic missiles (also known as Hwasong-11) that North Korea supplied to Russia were largely ineffective. According to reports from Ukrainian prosecutors, about half of them either veered off course or exploded in mid-air, making them unreliable. However, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov said that with Russian technical assistance, these missiles have been significantly upgraded, and are now capable of striking with what he called "deadly precision". Photo: @iiss.

Source: https://khoahocdoisong.vn/nga-giup-trieu-tien-tu-san-xuat-uav-cam-tu-shahed-136-post1547106.html