The speculated arms transfer between North Korea and Russia appears to have been confirmed with the discovery of a handwritten Korean character on a ballistic missile fired by Russia into Ukraine.

According to the UK-based Conflict Armament Research(CAR) on Wednesday, its investigators found a label with a handwritten consonant in the Korean alphabet, Hangeul, on a fragment of ballistic missile debris.

The discovery was made during the organization’s analysis of missile remnants from the strike on Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv on January 2, adding there was no further detection of Korean on other components.

CAR added that the wreckage examined included distinct jet vane actuators, the bolt pattern around the igniter and the repeated marking of the number 112, concluding that the missile is likely a KN-23 that was manufactured in North Korea.

The analysis posited that the numerical marking refers to either the "February 11” plant where such missiles are reportedly assembled or the 2023 equivalent on the North's Juche calendar.