For several months, thousands of North Korean soldiers have attacked the groove, bombarding, and fighting alongside the Russian army trying to remove the Ukrainian army from Russian territory.
When they first appeared last fall, North Korea’s deployments were already trusted at the forefront of 1,100 kilometers and forced to retreat, fearing the Ukrainian army. I was worried about the officials.
It didn’t happen. And it is said that the North Korean army is now brought back from the forefront. According to the New York Times report on January 31, the reason seems to be high.
The Ukrainian authorities received the complex evaluation of the Times report. One of the military INTELLIGENCE news agencies, which talked about anonymously, said to the current time that the North Korean army actually rotated due to a “big loss”, but characterized their movements as “standard operations”. 。 “
However, Ukraine’s Special Operation Command said that the RFE/RL Ukrainian military had not been observed in areas where special units were fighting for about three weeks.
If North Korea’s withdrawal or large -scale withdrawal has been confirmed, it will be embarrassing for Russian commanders -the concept that the North Korean army can create a decisive battlefield difference. Needless to say, the blow to.
This is what we know so far.
From Pyongyang to Cruch
A few weeks after the Ukrainian warning enhanced by satellite images and other open source intelligence, the North Korean army began to appear in mid -October in Russian areas adjacent to Ukraine. At that time, the authorities said that a total of more than 11,000 people would be.
At that time, it was not clear why Russian officials asked Pyongyang to help. Some experts have suggested that President Vladimir Putin is trying to call for new mobilization or send conscription to battle.
Western officials described it as a sign of despair. According to the western estimate, Russian casualties were killed or injured by the full invasion in February 2022.
“This indicates that he may be in trouble more than most people recognized,” said the U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at the time, mentioning Putin in October. I did it. “He went to tin cupping early and got additional weapons and ingredients,” said North Korea.
Ukrainian officials predicted two months ago that Ukraine would end in a Cruch, a border area that surprised Russia.
In fact, Ukrainian units reported multiple encounters with North Korea and took prisoners.
Did they create a difference on the battlefield?
When Ukraine punched across the border in August 2024, the army (containing the units that include the most experienced combat of the keyif) quickly seized a considerable amount of cruisk. I did.
It was the biggest invasion of Russian territory by foreign troops since World War II.
Russian defense was initially chambolic and confused. This imposed surprise and anger, especially among local residents. However, the commander re -placed the unit and slowly pushed the Ukrainian army. North Korean soldiers were deployed in October. Ukrainian officials reported their first collision with them in early November.
In the past Russian and North Korean troops, the Ukrainian army has recaptured more than half of the territory seized by Cruch.
A few days after the New Year, Ukraine Commander has ordered a new attack in the Cruch area to roll back North Korea’s interests.
Progress was again unclear, but some experts said that President Donald Trump could have earned territories and jockeys prior to the possibility of peace negotiations promoted. 。
It was during the efforts that the Ukrainian army seemed to capture several North Koreans.
“They work in accordance with Soviet tactics and are active in platoon and companies. They use a large amount of existence,” said Ukraine’s top soldiers, General Oreksander Silsky, said in a last month’s interview. Of course, this is a problem. “
So how bad the victims of North Korea are?
Ukrainian officials argued that a considerable victim of the North Korean army. Volodymyr Zelenskiy has more than 3,000 in late December.
Military information has released images of items taken from the North Korean Army (book, pamphlet, mobile phone), but the content is rarely shared.
In his interview, Silsky estimates that about half of 11,000 to 12,000 deployed troops have been killed or injured.
However, it was impossible to verify the estimate of Ukraine.
A few days before ZELENSKIY gave his estimate, South Korea’s major Intelligence report said that about 1,100 North Koreans were killed or injured. The White House made the same estimate on December 27.
South Korea’s Intellignce report has announced the latest aggregation on January 13. 2,700 injuries.
Returning the North Korean Army from the front line may be a sign of how effective the Ukrainian attack was, especially if the Pyongyang soldiers were targeted.
However, the rotation of the army is normal on the battlefield. Tired soldiers need rest. A highly victim unit must be replenished or reorganized. It is necessary to stockpile ammunition and shells.
