North Korea likely received technological assistance from Russia in developing its new “Hwasong-20” intercontinental ballistic missile.
This was stated by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea Jin Yong Soon, Yonhap reports.
A North Korean ballistic missile was first displayed last week at a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workersʼ Party of Korea.
The DPRK called the “Hwasong-20” the most “powerful strategic nuclear weapon system".
The design of the launcher for this missile is different from the previous Hwasong-19, which was first tested in October 2024. This has led to speculation that North Korea may have received help from Russia in developing a new ballistic missile amid their increasingly close military rapprochement.
“I believe that such a possibility exists,” said South Korean General Jin Yong Soon.
When asked about the militaryʼs ability to counter hypersonic missiles, Jin said that "the interception accuracy may be slightly reduced, but they can be intercepted".
Along with the “Hwasong-20”, North Korea has demonstrated a range of weapons, from a new hypersonic missile to vehicles designed to launch multiple attack drones.
A South Korean general acknowledged concerns about North Korean weapons development and assured that his armyʼs military is carefully preparing to respond.
Cooperation between North Korea and Russia
According to South Korean intelligence estimates, North Korea and Russia have dramatically increased military cooperation over the past two years, with Pyongyang sending more than 10 000 troops to participate in the war against Ukraine in exchange for economic and military-technological assistance. As of early September, about 2 000 of them were reported to have been killed.
In addition to manpower, the DPRK provides Russia with weapons. Back in early January 2024, Western media wrote that Russia had received a batch of ballistic missiles from the DPRK (several dozen) and launchers for them. At the same time, the US officially stated that Russia had short-range ballistic missiles from the DPRK and had launched them over Ukraine.
The head of GUR Kyrylo Budanov said in January 2025 that North Korea plans to send another 150 ballistic missiles to Russia this year.
In April, Reuters reported that North Korea had handed over up to 6 million shells to Russia. Without them, Russia would not have been able to wage war so actively. At some points last year, the majority of the shells used by individual Russian units were North Korean. In some places, it was 100%. The publication noted that this was Russiaʼs most significant direct military assistance in the war.
South Koreaʼs Ministry of Defense also reported that North Korea likely received technical assistance from Russia in the development of its submarines.
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