It is clear what Vladimir Putin gains from thousands of North Korean troops joining Russia’s prolonged war in Ukraine. But the motivation behind Kim Jong Un sending young and inexperienced soldiers into a battle that will enter its third winter this year is less apparent.
North Korean soldiers training to fight in Europe’s biggest conflict since the Second World War have stakeholders watching to see if the so-called “blood alliance” with Russia could become one of the most lucrative projects the reclusive country has ever pursued.
Thousands of North Korean soldiers are already training in Russia for combat with the Ukrainian army alongside the Russian president’s troops as the two most heavily sanctioned and isolated regimes step up their friendship to an unprecedented level.
South Korea, the US, and the UK have confirmed the presence of North Korean soldiers on Russian soil with most massing near the Kursk border of Ukraine where Mr Putin’s forces have faced some of the toughest battleground challenges from Kyiv.
The South Korean intelligence agency, which first raised the alarm over the troop deployment, has said at least 12,000 soldiers including generals and senior officials are in Russia now, and American intelligence said they could be fighting “within days”.
It would mark the first time that North Korea, which has one of the world’s largest militaries with 1.2 million soldiers, has put boots on the ground in an international conflict. North Korea has not fought a war since 1953 when the Korean war ended in an armistice but has been preparing for a renewed conflict with South Korea.
Denne historien er fra November 07, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra November 07, 2024-utgaven av The Independent.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
HOT AND BOTHERED
We’ve got through Halloween and bonfire night and it’s still too warm for a heavy coat. Helen Coffey asks the experts why the weather’s been so mild and if it will ever get cold again
I'm far happier now than I was being a 'smug married'
Stacey Duguid has embraced being a divorced single mum after leaving an unhappy relationship. She ponders her past obsession with getting hitched and questions a new survey that suggests marriage staves off low mood and depression
'People say we don't care what others think - we do'
South Africa are trying to change perceptions, charismatic director of rugby Rassie Erasmus tells Harry Latham-Coyle
OXFORD SCHOLAR
Des Buckingham is loving life in charge of his hometown club after a nomadic career. He speaks to Lawrence Ostlere
Unlucky Gunners can take hope from defeat to Inter
Arsenal have traded St James’ Park for San Siro but the scoreline has stayed the same.
Markets are re-energised but not everyone's a winner
The financial world has been electrified by Trump’s election victory. Once the new president is installed, though, writes Chris Blackhurst, the implications will become much clearer
McGregor accuser feared she would die, court hears
A woman broke down in tears yesterday as she accused MMA star Conor McGregor of raping her and told a court she was fearful she would never see her daughter again while he was choking her.
'It was so fast. The next day she was found dead inside'
The mangled car in which Jorge Tarazona’s three-year-old niece and sister-in-law died in last week’s flooding in Spain now hangs halfway off the ragged edge of a highway.
Kim expects leverage for lending Putin his troops
North Korea’s leader wants cash, missile technology and food for letting thousands of his soldiers fight against Ukraine
GP jailed over 'audacious' fake Covid jab murder plot
A GP who disguised himself as a nurse and poisoned his mother’s partner with a fake Covid jab in an audacious” plot to murder him has been jailed for 31 years.