The Fort Worth Press - What would North Korean soldiers do in Ukraine?

USD -
AED 3.672965
AFN 68.564771
ALL 93.747911
AMD 390.284429
ANG 1.810594
AOA 913.503248
ARS 1003.985697
AUD 1.539883
AWG 1.8025
AZN 1.702842
BAM 1.867656
BBD 2.028371
BDT 120.054049
BGN 1.867905
BHD 0.376893
BIF 2967.603314
BMD 1
BND 1.350013
BOB 6.941467
BRL 5.815601
BSD 1.004588
BTN 84.879318
BWP 13.715061
BYN 3.287735
BYR 19600
BZD 2.025029
CAD 1.398295
CDF 2869.999885
CHF 0.88682
CLF 0.035289
CLP 973.739958
CNY 7.2471
CNH 7.256035
COP 4391.61
CRC 510.697626
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 105.296581
CZK 24.213402
DJF 178.896958
DKK 7.12399
DOP 60.533139
DZD 133.589763
EGP 49.728798
ERN 15
ETB 125.19309
EUR 0.955165
FJD 2.27695
FKP 0.789317
GBP 0.79555
GEL 2.725041
GGP 0.789317
GHS 15.9733
GIP 0.789317
GMD 70.99948
GNF 8659.405931
GTQ 7.755077
GYD 210.182537
HKD 7.782735
HNL 25.38723
HRK 7.133259
HTG 131.897725
HUF 392.801974
IDR 15909.45
ILS 3.721665
IMP 0.789317
INR 84.493098
IQD 1316.106114
IRR 42105.00017
ISK 139.550476
JEP 0.789317
JMD 159.547343
JOD 0.709104
JPY 154.815003
KES 129.250139
KGS 86.496409
KHR 4051.853797
KMF 469.650261
KPW 899.999621
KRW 1401.674983
KWD 0.30772
KYD 0.837201
KZT 498.204702
LAK 22005.452662
LBP 89966.529634
LKR 292.295131
LRD 181.336364
LSL 18.178163
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 4.907395
MAD 10.047317
MDL 18.293632
MGA 4704.107261
MKD 58.794018
MMK 3247.960992
MNT 3397.999946
MOP 8.054107
MRU 39.953781
MUR 46.849926
MVR 15.450348
MWK 1742.028515
MXN 20.4392
MYR 4.467501
MZN 63.898751
NAD 18.17825
NGN 1691.079915
NIO 36.769541
NOK 11.080795
NPR 135.806643
NZD 1.71448
OMR 0.384998
PAB 1.004588
PEN 3.816004
PGK 4.044176
PHP 58.871499
PKR 279.238615
PLN 4.14822
PYG 7884.8734
QAR 3.662677
RON 4.753398
RSD 111.760027
RUB 101.299489
RWF 1380.387139
SAR 3.754503
SBD 8.36952
SCR 13.619873
SDG 601.511164
SEK 11.079195
SGD 1.346625
SHP 0.789317
SLE 22.584964
SLL 20969.504736
SOS 574.129781
SRD 35.404978
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.790275
SYP 2512.529858
SZL 18.186159
THB 34.710066
TJS 10.699307
TMT 3.51
TND 3.178235
TOP 2.342099
TRY 34.574696
TTD 6.819267
TWD 32.55201
TZS 2652.358973
UAH 41.476647
UGX 3711.856071
UYU 42.810419
UZS 12854.999727
VES 46.269401
VND 25417.5
VUV 118.722009
WST 2.791591
XAF 626.409275
XAG 0.032277
XAU 0.000372
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.766351
XOF 626.39432
XPF 113.885189
YER 249.900973
ZAR 18.115298
ZMK 9001.202295
ZMW 27.702577
ZWL 321.999592
  • RBGPF

    59.6900

    59.69

    +100%

  • RYCEF

    0.1800

    6.79

    +2.65%

  • CMSD

    0.1850

    24.445

    +0.76%

  • CMSC

    0.1200

    24.64

    +0.49%

  • RIO

    0.1800

    62.57

    +0.29%

  • SCS

    -0.0300

    13.04

    -0.23%

  • NGG

    -0.1700

    63.1

    -0.27%

  • BTI

    -0.1000

    36.98

    -0.27%

  • GSK

    0.3500

    33.7

    +1.04%

  • BCC

    2.9500

    140.36

    +2.1%

  • BCE

    -0.3200

    26.68

    -1.2%

  • RELX

    0.6500

    45.76

    +1.42%

  • JRI

    0.0000

    13.23

    0%

  • VOD

    -0.1000

    8.84

    -1.13%

  • AZN

    1.0600

    64.26

    +1.65%

  • BP

    0.4400

    29.52

    +1.49%

What would North Korean soldiers do in Ukraine?
What would North Korean soldiers do in Ukraine? / Photo: © KCNA VIA KNS/AFP

What would North Korean soldiers do in Ukraine?

The presence of North Korean soldiers alongside Russians fighting Ukraine raises many tactical and military questions, leading some analysts to wonder about their effectiveness and ultimate objectives.

Text size:

North Korea had never sent troops into combat abroad before, primarily out of fear that they might defect or make unflattering comparisons between foreign armies and their own.

"The regime is worried that soldiers from the isolated country might pick up 'incorrect' ideas," wrote Fyodor Tertitskiy, a researcher at Seoul's Kookmin University.

- What type of units? -

Citing US intelligence, Secretary of State Antony Blinken had already previously mentioned a North Korean deployment in the Russian region of Kursk, which was attacked by Ukraine in August.

According to Blinken, they are equipped with Russian uniforms and trained in artillery, drones, and infantry operations, including trench clearing.

This, he said, showed that Moscow intends to use them in frontline operations.

But are they cannon fodder or special forces? South Korean analysts lean towards the latter option.

"While casualties are an inevitable part of war, what's the point of sending inexperienced and or incompetent soldiers to gain combat experience?", said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.

"North Korea must showcase the combat effectiveness and operational capabilities of its soldiers to maximise the outcomes of its deployments," added Lim Eul-chul at Kyungnam University.

- Limited volume -

Reliable figures are hard to come by, but Western sources say there are around 10,000 North Korean soldiers deployed, while Kyiv says there are 11,000.

This is the equivalent of current Russian losses in about 10 days of fighting.

"If Russia is having manpower issues, it will require far more North Koreans to address these challenges," observed Mick Ryan, a retired Australian general.

Others, however, argue that the contingent is non-negligible so long as the soldiers remain in the Kursk region.

"The strength of North Korean special operations forces lies in their ability to endure harsh conditions, even when food and other resources are in short supply," said Lim. "They have strong mental resilience."

- Language barrier -

Can Russians and North Koreans jointly wage a war that depends on translators?

"While translators will be helpful, this kind of communication gap can, and will, be a problem during combat operations," said Ryan.

Meanwhile, there remains a plethora of organisational questions: will the North Koreans deploy rank-and-file soldiers as well as command structures? Will they be autonomous or integrated into Russian units? For what tasks?

"Ukrainian intelligence has stated that the North Koreans arrived in Russia with 500 officers and three generals," said Ivan Klyszcz, a research fellow at the International Centre for Defence and Security in Estonia.

"This could facilitate communication if the Russian and North Korean generals manage to work together, but there are too many unknowns at this stage to be conclusive," he said.

- Limited experience -

Pyongyang's special forces are primarily trained to prevent a coup d'etat at home.

"Their complicated chain of command emerged from a system in which political commissars signed off on every military decision," wrote Tertitskiy.

"It's an open question whether this cumbersome system will be modified for the purposes of the war in Ukraine. Either way, such a change would be impossible without the personal agreement of Kim Jong Un," North Korea's leader, he said.

Moreover, North Korean troops who have not fought since 1953 would likely struggle against Ukrainians who have been at war for two-and-a-half years.

Kim's army relies on 20th-Century-style mass mobilisation with around a third of the population involved in the military, either actively or in reserve or paramilitary units, said Klyszcz.

But "despite their Communist regime being a throwback of sorts to the Soviet model, their military focus on mass power has become oddly relevant again in the 21st Century", he said.

- Valuable lessons -

The deployment will be monitored and analysed from all angles.

"Sharing lessons on modern combat, particularly on the integrated use of drones, cruise and ballistic missiles will be of great interest to North Korea," said Ryan, also pointing to valuable lessons to be learnt about "electronic warfare, countering air defences, and insights gleaned from captured Western weapons in Ukraine".

But the reverse also appears true, according to Tertitskiy, who wrote that "Seoul seems to sense an opportunity to acquire intelligence on its longstanding foe".

This is especially valuable since the pandemic-related border closure significantly reduced the number of refugees from the North reaching the South, who constitute "the main source of information" for Seoul about its neighbour.

L.Coleman--TFWP