Incidents of friendly fire involving North Korean and Russian military equipment have been reported in Russia’s Kursk region, where North Korean troops are deployed. The debacles are believed to be caused by identification errors amid chaotic frontline conditions.
In a video released on January 10 by a pro-Russia war blogger, a Russian military drone is seen launching a missile at a ground-based target, resulting in a plume of smoke rising from the impacted site. Military and weapons experts have analyzed the footage and identified the target as a North Korean-made air defense system.
The weapon system in question first appeared during a military parade in Pyongyang on October 10, 2020, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Workers’ Party of Korea. Due to its similarity to Russia’s Tor air defense system, it has been dubbed the “North Korean version of Tor.”
Lee Il-woo, Secretary-General of South Korea’s military research group Defense Network for Self-Reliance, confirmed that the targeted system is North Korean. Speaking with Radio Free Asia (RFA) on January 14, he said, “The radar and vertical launch modules mounted on the trailer are characteristic of North Korea’s unique field air defense systems. No other country possesses such a system.”
According to Lee, the incident was likely the result of the disorganized battlefield situation in the Kursk region. He noted that another friendly fire incident occurred on January 6, when a North Korean-made surface-to-surface missile destroyed a Russian 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer in Kursk.
“The surface-to-surface missile, known as the ‘North Korean Spike NLOS,’ recently appeared in the Kursk region and destroyed several artillery units, including Russian self-propelled howitzers,” Lee said.
“Since Ukrainian and Russian weapon systems are often derived from the same Soviet-era designs, it can be difficult to distinguish between friend and foe. While experts can identify the systems, ordinary soldiers on the ground may not recognize whether it’s a Tor system or not.”
The operating forces behind the drone and anti-tank missile strikes in both incidents remain unknown, and it is unclear whether they were controlled by North Korean or Russian troops.
Friendly fire incidents have also occurred due to difficulties in distinguishing forces during combat. “Russian troops wear red armbands, while Ukrainian forces wear blue armbands, but identifying them through drones or thermal imaging cameras is challenging, leading to frequent friendly fire incidents,” Lee explained.
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
