North Korea is suffering massive losses in Russia’s war against Ukraine, but Kim Jong-un is carefully covering up the deaths of his own citizens. What is known about the North Korean soldiers who appear in Russia, and what are the last words in their letters? How did it happen that dying for them is many times better than being captured, and what are relatives living in North Korea being forced to keep silent about? Read about all this in the TSN.ua exclusive.
New TikTok troops or a real threat?
The North Korean military has already managed to become famous for raping a 28-year-old teacher of the Russian People’s Friendship University, who came to Kurshchyna to teach Russian language to North Korean soldiers. Kim Jong-un’s fighters also became famous for the way they run away from Ukrainian drones on the battlefield, and they drive Russians out of their homes. Well, between battles, where they are involved in assaults, they shoot videos for TikTok.
Cell phones in the DPRK exist, but they only work on the internal network and do not have access to the Internet or international calls. This is a kind of “closed Internet” that contains only carefully filtered and government-created resources. But after arriving in Russia, some of Kim’s soldiers decided to become real TikTok heroes and compete with Kadyrov’s clowns.
Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the DPRK
However, do not underestimate the enemy. After all, the involvement of the North Korean military in the war against Ukraine in any case carries a direct threat. And the exchange of information between the two dictatorships allows the DPRK to gain important combat experience to prepare for military action against its own neighbors.
This was confirmed by the Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations, Dorothy Camilla Shea. The diplomat reminded that more than 12,000 North Korean servicemen are in Russia, where fighting against Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region began last month.
The DPRK has a significant benefit from receiving Russian military equipment, technology and experience. North Korea will likely seek to use these improvements to advance arms sales contracts and military training around the world.
In turn, South Korea’s ambassador to the UN, Hwang Junkuk, called North Korean soldiers essentially slaves of Kim Jong-un, brainwashed to sacrifice their lives on distant battlefields to raise money for his regime and obtain advanced military technology from Russia. And the head of the Council of Reservists of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ivan Tymochko, said on the air of “Suspilny” that the North Koreans are preparing for a large-scale war and will increase their presence in Russia, but this is not for its protection.
North Korean troops consider this war “liberation from Western imperialism.” They have faith that in the future they will carry the ideas of communism, socialism, their ideology to the whole world. What’s more, Kim Jong-un has already banned North Koreans from eating hot dogs, which are allegedly part of “undesirable Western culture,” and making or selling them is now also a crime that equates to treason.
But Ivan Tymochko absolutely agreed with the words of the President of Ukraine regarding the fact that the DPRK can send another 30-40 thousand soldiers to the war, and perhaps even half a million. He added that they will definitely not be brought at once, because it will be a problem for Russia. They will be systematically introduced and tested in Russia.
According to him, those who survive will go home to train new units to conduct combat operations in modern conditions. Others will gain experience, and such a cycle will be formed. At this stage, they will start doing it at the level of units, brigades, then – divisions, some operational corps and so on. That is, the DPRK will increase its presence in Russia.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte previously stated that the nuclear and missile technologies that Russia is transferring to North Korea in exchange for weapons and North Korean troops could threaten Europe and the United States. As the Secretary General of the Alliance emphasized, one should not be naive, because there are every reason to claim that nuclear and missile technologies are reaching North Korea, and now there is a risk that the DPRK will use them. This could pose a threat not only to Europe, the US mainland, but also to the neighboring region, including South Korea and Japan.
Zelenskyy mentioned the losses of North Korean soldiers in the war against Ukraine
The losses of the military from North Korea, which are fighting against the Ukrainian forces, amount to 4 thousand people wounded and killed, the President of Ukraine announced during the meeting in the Rammstein format on January 9. Kim Jong-un’s regime forces the families of soldiers killed in Kurshchyna to sign non-disclosure documents. Relatives of the dead are also prohibited from communicating with each other.
Interestingly, the North Korean authorities call participation in the war against Ukraine “sacred exercises”. And Kim Jong-un’s regime monitors the sentiments of families who have received a certificate about the death of a relative in combat, and takes measures to prevent the spread of information. This was reported by the publication “Free Asia”.
The North Korean regime awards “warrior’s certificates” to the families of soldiers who died while participating in the war or during combat training. Families of fallen soldiers receive preferential support from the state. And recently, the North Korean authorities summoned the families of the victims and awarded them (that’s the word – “award” is used in the DPRK) with “certificates of soldiers”, without informing the residents that among the dead were those soldiers who were sent to the Russian Federation.
The Russians don’t care about the North Korean soldiers
Andriy Kovalenko, the head of the Center for countering disinformation at the NSDC, said that the North Korean military in Kurshchyna reacted rather strangely to drones. The dead Canadians did not have a visual understanding of the danger from UAVs before the drone strikes, which may indicate that the Russians did not properly inform the Koreans about the use of drones on the front.
It also shows that the lives of Koreans are of no value to the Russians. However, the Russian army is trying to expeditiously remove the bodies of dead Koreans from the combat zone. The evacuation of these bodies is better organized than that of dead or wounded Russians. The desire to hide the failures of the DPRK soldiers plays a role.
South Korean intelligence says that Kim Jong-un is ready to hand over attack drones to Russia. Previously, Kim demonstrated tests of certain types of such drones. It is possible that they will be tested in Kurshchyna.
North Korea is sending its soldiers to help Russia so that they can gain combat experience and be ready for a potential war. This follows from another entry in the notebook of North Korean special agent Jong, who was eliminated by Ukrainian soldiers in Kurshchyna.
The goal of the dictator Kim Jong-un is the experience of modern warfare to use it on the Korean peninsula, in particular for drone provocations on the border with South Korea to begin with. On January 1, 2025, the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korea has created a New Year’s propaganda picture that encourages the implementation of the decisions of the Party Central Committee and increased combat mobilization. The propaganda picture shows a soldier in military uniform aiming a Kalashnikov assault rifle against a red background.
A video from Kurshchyna, the village of Makhnivka, has already been shared on social networks. Soldiers from North Korea, proudly dressed in Russian uniforms, are methodically evicting local Russian residents from their own homes. Of course, no one asks the Russians themselves.
Russia is trying to knock out the Ukrainian army from the territory of the Kursk region. However, the Russians suffer losses. Recently, they lost up to a battalion of infantry only near one village of Makhnivka. In particular, with North Korean soldiers and Russian paratroopers. Forbes writes about it.
The publication emphasizes that Makhnivka came under the control of the Ukrainian military at the end of the summer of 2024. However, this particular settlement has been the scene of fierce fighting for several days. In particular, a video appeared online showing Russian and North Korean troops entering the village and coming under fire from Ukrainian infantry, tanks and drones.
The Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies emphasizes that hostilities in Kurshchyna have intensified to the maximum level. The unprecedented peak of clashes forces aggressors to use up all available resources. In particular, it is an extremely inconvenient and unprofitable time for Russians.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that “Russian and North Korean commanders treat North Korean troops as expendable” and “rather than surrender, North Korean soldiers commit suicide or are executed by their colleagues.” This was done so that family members who remained in their hometown would not be at a disadvantage. In addition, North Korea’s military regulations strictly prohibit becoming a prisoner of war.
North Korea considers the soldiers in captivity as a betrayal of the system and the country. Moreover, troops were sent to the Russian front secretly.
It is worth recalling the story of the North Korean prisoners of war during the Korean War who were not accepted by the DPRK authorities when they wanted to return after denying their intention to stay in South Korea. Returning prisoners had to undergo a strict ideological check and re-education, during which they had to prove their loyalty to the regime.
As a result, returning soldiers were socially isolated or placed under surveillance, which resulted in serious losses not only for them but also for their families. They often became victims of suspicions of collaboration with the enemy. Many of them were interrogated, sent to labor camps and even executed.
Letters of soldiers of the DPRK
More and more letters of North Korean fighters who were eliminated by Ukrainian defenders are appearing on social networks. In another note, Private Jong writes that he was sent thousands of kilometers away to help the Russian troops for some fault. And they sent him on the orders of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. The military man is convinced that he is protecting North Korea in the Kursk region. Later, the same Jong admitted in another note that he robbed the Russian military in the Kursk region of Russia and sold the stolen goods. He does not say exactly what he stole or how much, but his notes suggest that someone framed him for the theft.
“Dear Commander-in-Chief Kim Jong-un ordered us not to humiliate the honor of the motherland under any circumstances, and at the same time to show the strength and bravery of the special forces. While working in the barracks, I thought that no one was watching me and put the things of the Russians in my pocket. My fault is that I didn’t follow the command of the commander-in-chief and stole something that belongs to another country. It could cause serious consequences for our commanders. I won’t do it again trade in other people’s things. I will heroically advance in the front ranks and destroy the enemies,” the note reads.
The GUR also informed that North Korean soldiers fighting on the side of Russia continue to lose personnel and demonstrate low morale. On New Year’s Eve, cases of excessive alcohol consumption among the North Korean military were recorded. In intelligence, it was noted that the commanders at the level of departments, platoons, and companies deliberately hide from the leadership the real level of losses among the soldiers of the DPRK.
The appearance of North Korean troops in the Russian-Ukrainian war is an alarming signal that goes far beyond the scope of the local conflict. This is an open challenge to the international security system, which is faced with a new form of hybrid aggression, where dictatorships merge into symbiosis to destroy the democratic world.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi has repeatedly stated that China can influence North Korea. According to him, if China is sincere in its claims that the war should not expand, the corresponding influence on Pyongyang is needed.
The DPRK and Russia have long ignored international norms. Both states promote dictatorial models of governance, contrasting themselves with the democratic world. Their union can create a new center of totalitarianism that will influence other authoritarian regimes, pushing them to unite with a similar anti-democratic coalition.
The alliance between Russia and the DPRK is not just a tactical rapprochement of two isolated states, but an open challenge to all democratic and free societies. This is a signal that dictatorships are able to unite to achieve a common goal – the destruction of the world order built on the principles of freedom, human rights and the rule of law. Inaction in the face of the unification of dictatorships threatens further escalation of conflicts, strengthening of the nuclear threat and expansion of totalitarian ideas.
▶ On the TSN YouTube channel, you can watch the video at this link: North Korean fighters write suicide letters and beat Kadyrov’s TikTok troops! What is known?!
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