Profile
- Type
- Road-mobile short-range ballistic missile family
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Origin
- North Korea
- Service note
- Introduced through flight tests from 2019 and documented in Russian use during the full-scale Russia-Ukraine War
Artillery
North Korean KN-23 / KN-24
The KN-23 and KN-24 are North Korean solid-fuel short-range ballistic missiles associated with the Hwasong-11 family. The KN-23 is a quasi-ballistic, Iskander-like system with an estimated range up to about 690 km, while the KN-24 is an ATACMS-like tactical ballistic missile assessed around 410 km. Their appearance in Russian strikes against Ukraine made them a documented example of North Korean missile proliferation into a high-intensity European war.
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Built in
- North Korea
Service History
- In service
- North Korean service and Russian wartime use documented from late 2023 onward
- Used by
- Korean People's Army Strategic Force, Russian Armed Forces
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War
Production History
- Designer
- North Korean state missile design organizations
- Designed
- Late 2010s
- Built in
- North Korea
- Unit cost
- Not publicly disclosed
- Produced
- 2019 onward
- Number built
- Not publicly disclosed
- Variants
- KN-23 / Hwasong-11A, KN-24 / Hwasong-11B
Specifications
- Class
- Short-range ballistic missile (SRBM)
- Propulsion
- Single-stage solid propellant
- Basing
- Road-mobile transporter-erector-launcher
- KN-23 range
- Up to about 690 km according to CSIS Missile Threat
- KN-23 payload
- Estimated 500 kg
- KN-24 range
- About 410 km according to CSIS Missile Threat
- KN-24 payload
- Estimated 400-500 kg
- Guidance and flight profile
- Quasi-ballistic or variable ballistic trajectory; Ukrainian debris analysis identified satellite-navigation receiver features
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Russia
Russian forces used North Korean KN-23 and KN-24 short-range ballistic missiles in attacks on Ukrainian cities; Ukrainian Ministry of Defence specialists examined recovered missile debris from combat use, including fragments from a missile that fell in Kharkiv on 2 January 2024.
North Korean KN-23 / KN-24 Images
Related Weapon Systems
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GhadrMedium-range ballistic missileGhadr is an Iranian medium-range ballistic missile family derived from the Shahab-3 line, with a lighter airframe, conic reentry vehicle, and range class intended to hold regional targets at risk. It is associated with Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group and Iran's Aerospace Industries Organization, and recent reporting directly documents Ghadr use by Iran during the June 2025 missile exchange connected to the United States-Iran Conflict archive..jpg?width=480)
Ghadr-1Road-mobile medium-range ballistic missileThe Ghadr-1 is an Iranian road-mobile medium-range ballistic missile derived from the Shahab-3 line, with a stretched liquid-fueled airframe, reduced warhead mass, and a reshaped reentry vehicle intended to extend reach toward roughly 1,600 km. Open sources describe it as part of Iran's strategic strike inventory, with Ghadr-family missiles documented in Iranian attacks on Israel during the 2025 Israel-Iran Conflict.
Kheybar ShekanSolid-fuel medium-range ballistic missileKheybar Shekan is an Iranian solid-fuel medium-range ballistic missile associated with the IRGC Aerospace Force and intended for rapid-launch long-range strikes. Open-source assessments list it as a deployed 1,450 km-class system with a 450-600 kg payload, and Iran has used it in documented post-2024 missile strikes against Islamic State-linked targets in Syria and Israeli military targets.Sources
KN-23Publisher: CSIS Missile Threat | Note: Supports KN-23 background, class, basing, propulsion, payload, range, and quasi-ballistic flight profile. | Accessed: 2026-06-20KN-24Publisher: CSIS Missile Threat | Note: Supports KN-24 background, class, basing, propulsion, payload, and range estimates. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Preliminary Assessment of the KN-24 Missile LaunchesPublisher: 38 North | Note: Supports KN-24 technical context, including its single-stage solid-fuel design, variable ballistic trajectory, guidance discussion, and ATACMS-like exterior comparison. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Anatomy of KN-23 and KN-24: Ministry of Defence Experts Studied North Korean Missiles Russia Used Against UkrainePublisher: Ministry of Defence of Ukraine | Note: Directly supports Russia-Ukraine War conflict-use context, Ukrainian forensic analysis of recovered missile debris, selected dimensional details, and the MoD image used under the site's stated CC BY 4.0 terms unless otherwise noted. | Accessed: 2026-06-20North Korea Expanding KN-23 Missile Production for Use by RussiaPublisher: Kyiv Post | Note: Supports attributed production context for the February 11 Plant and Ryongsong Machine Complex, citing analysts who reviewed satellite imagery. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Diagram of KN-23.svgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance; the KN-23 diagram is listed as own work by Geoarchive under CC BY-SA 4.0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20