UEMS / Ammunition Depot event in Russian Federation on Sat 7th September 2024

Ukraine has struck a Russian missile depot housing weapons from North Korea, according to Ukrainian officials, amid growing concerns over the two isolated countries' deepening military ties.

Reports have recently surfaced of Russia using North Korean missiles on the Ukrainian battlefield, a military collaboration that has flouted international sanctions and drawn the international community's outrage.

Andrii Kovalenko, the head of Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation, announced the strike via Telegram on Saturday morning.

"An ammunition depot was hit in Soldatske, Voronezh region," he wrote, adding that the strike "destroyed Korean missiles, which Putin actually begged from Kim Jong Un, humiliating himself."

The strike on Voronezh, 110 miles from the Ukrainian border, had been confirmed by Alexander Gusev, the region's governor, hours earlier.

"Air defense and electronic warfare systems on duty in the Ostrogozhsky district detected and suppressed an unmanned aerial vehicle," Gusev wrote on Telegram. "According to preliminary data, there were no casualties. However, as a result of the fall of the UAV, a fire broke out, which spread to explosive objects."

A state of emergency was declared in the district, leading to evacuations and the deployment of emergency crews to tackle the blaze and prevent additional munitions from detonating.