Vladimir Putin's forces, with the help of North Korean troops, have made huge inroads in the Kursk region of Russia, which had been occupied by Ukraine since last summer. The North Koreans are supported by well-equipped drone units operated by Russia as well as incessant airstrikes and artillery attacks that provide them cover.
Oleksii, the commander of a Ukrainian communications unit fighting in Kursk, told The New York Times that they are outnumbered by six men against 50 North Koreans in each unit.
It is estimated that around 12,000 North Koreans have been deployed in Russia since January. More than 300 of them have been killed and over 2,700 injured as of January. The latest numbers following the Kursk offensive could be far higher.
Controlling Russian territory of Kursk was seen as Kyiv's bargaining chip to negotiate lost territories in its Donbas region as well as its strategy to force Moscow to shift attention away from the Ukrainian frontline. They had secured a bridgehead of 200 square miles surrounding Sudzha town of Russia last year, taking Putin's troops by surprise.
Hence, a retreat from the Russian land could put Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a disadvantage, especially as US President Donald Trump had halted all financial and military aid to Ukraine recently. The Pyongyang troops have helped Moscow take back more than 60 per cent of the land occupied by Kyiv.
### **North Koreans and their suicide mission**
Ukraine had earlier killed several North Korean soldiers and could only capture two of them alive. This is reportedly because most of the troops sent by Pyongyang kill themselves before they are captured.
Ryu Seong-hyeon, a former sergeant in the North Korean military who defected to South Korea in 2019, told ABC News that the soldiers have been told that their families would be executed if they are caught alive. "It's the biggest shame to be captured," he said.
This fear of losing their loved ones has reportedly made the North Koreans fight ferociously and prepared to die to avoid captivity.
Earlier reports said the North Koreans were struggling to adapt to modern warfare, with troops being chased down by attack drones. Ryu told the outlet that they don't have the training to defend against a drone. "That's why they just die like a dog," he said.
In January, Zelenskyy declared that his forces caught two North Korean soldiers alive. The soldiers reportedly said they want to remain in Ukraine, fearing execution if they are handed over to Pyongyang.
### **Training and change in tactics**
Ukrainian troops have revealed that North Koreans are always deployed in the front lines but unlike earlier they are now trained to fight in the presence of drones. They are also coordinating well with the North Korean artillery units and Russia's elite drone teams, the NYT quoted Andrii, a Ukrainian drone commander, as saying.
In the recent offensive, the North Koreans broke through the Ukrainian lines near the small village of Kurylvka. The soldiers on the Ukrainian side have admitted that there were “simply too many North Koreans”.
On the Russian side, they have deployed state-of-the-art fibre-optic drones, which cannot be jammed like the regular radio-controlled drones. These drones have helped the Russians and North Koreans to hit Kyiv's supply line, which is the only road connecting Russia's Sudzha to Ukraine.