NATO and its Western allies have consistently demonstrated excellence in military operations. Whether it was the Gulf War in 1991, the Kosovo War in 1999 or the Iraq War in 2003, NATO played a leading role and attracted the participation of many countries.
After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, NATO once again showed its tendency to "fight in groups". The United States and other NATO member states and other Western countries have joined forces to provide Ukraine with a large amount of ** equipment and other support, trying to start a ** human war through this collective force, in order to weaken or even defeat Russia.
However, NATO and Western countries' strategy of "fighting in groups" is not invincible. Russia also has its real allies. After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Belarus and other countries also provided strong support to Russia. In addition, there are reports that North Korea has also provided ** equipment assistance to Russia.
According to the statement of John Kirby, spokesman of the US Committee on January 4, 2024, the United States has evidence that North Korea is providing tactical ballistic missiles to Russia. In the last few operations, a number of ballistic missiles launched by Russian forces allegedly came from North Korea. The U.S. side claims to have conducted a comparative analysis of the tail wreckage of these missiles and determined that the characteristics of these missiles are fully consistent with the KN-23 tactical ballistic missiles equipped by North Korea.
The U.S. claims that North Korea has begun to provide ** aid to Russia, and that transportation mainly consists of sea and rail, and most of it is loaded in containers. Allegedly, by the end of February this year, the DPRK had supplied Russia with about 10,000 containers of war materiel. This assistance is perceived as an increase in Russia's military power, especially in land operations. It is estimated that these containers may be loaded with millions of artillery shells and rockets, enough to support the needs of the Russian army for long-term operations. In addition, there are reports that 122-mm shells from the DPRK have been delivered to the front line of the Russian army. However, it is worth noting that despite the constant hype of this incident by the American side, neither Russia nor North Korea has officially confirmed the existence of such ** assistance.
At the moment, several ** pieces of equipment that the Russian army consumes the most in combat include long-range tactical missiles, covering both ballistic and cruise missiles. This is followed by long-range attack drones and cruise missiles. The third is a variety of heavy ammunition, of which artillery shells and rockets are the most consumed. At present, the Russian army consumes tens of thousands of shells of various types every day, which is an alarming figure. Despite the fact that Russia has expanded its production, it is still very difficult to meet this consumption.
Long-range artillery of the Russian army was fired at the same time. And for the DPRK, although they can also produce tactical missiles autonomously, they cannot produce such expensive and complex production ** in large quantities as Russia. In addition, the level of equipment such as drones and cruise missiles in the DPRK is inferior to that of Russia. However, the DPRK excels at producing artillery shells and rockets of various models and calibers, which has become one of the best equipment that they can supply Russia in large quantities.
The Korean People's Army has more than 10,000 artillery pieces of various types for land warfare, covering a wide range of models and calibers. Artillery and rocket artillery are their main land warfare**, so they not only have a large number of shells in stock, but also have a huge shell production system.
Russia's current largest consumption of ** equipment is concentrated on artillery shells and rockets of various calibers. This type of ** happens to be one of North Korea's main exports, so if the U.S. claims are true, North Korea has provided Russia with about 10,000 containers of war materiel aid over the past five months, a significant portion of which may be artillery shells of various types.
Receiving a steady stream of artillery aid from North Korea will undoubtedly greatly reduce the pressure on the Russian army to consume artillery shells in battle. However, for NATO countries such as the United States, as well as some Western countries, this news is not favorable.
After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the United States and other countries provided Ukraine with a large amount of artillery assistance. However, their assistance is limited. In 2023, a number of European countries jointly announced the supply of 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine, but by the end of that year, only 300,000 shells had actually been provided.
These 300,000 rounds of artillery shells are not enough to meet the Ukrainian army's sustained operational needs for two months. By comparison, the United States currently produces about 1 million shells a year. Even if the United States supplies all artillery shells to Ukraine, it will still be insignificant compared to the artillery aid available to the Russian army.
On the battlefield, the long-range artillery of the Russian army was put into operation.
The cost of artillery shells and rockets is more affordable than cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. However, on the battlefield, the consumption of artillery shells is huge, and although the production capacity of artillery shells in peacetime is sufficient to cope with the general situation, once involved in a large-scale, long-term war, it may fall into the dilemma of insufficient supply.
This is a thorny problem that the United States and other countries are currently facing. Although these countries want to continue to provide Ukraine with large quantities of artillery shells to support its long-term war, this desire may be difficult to achieve due to insufficient production capacity. In stark contrast, Russia has now significantly expanded its artillery production. This, combined with North Korean assistance, gives Russia a huge advantage in this regard. As a result, countries such as the United States simply cannot compete with Russia and North Korea in this area.