“AT THE COST OF BLOOD”
The timing of the confirmation, after more than six months of silence, and stressing the sacrifice of North Korean troops “at the cost of blood” was meant to amplify Kim’s partnership with Putin as equals, said Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification.
“It now became necessary to put on a diplomatic performance for the North Korean and Russian leaders to pledge stronger ties,” Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul said, calling the confirmation “a build-up” to a summit meeting in Russia.
The announcement sends a clear signal to Ukraine and its western partners that Russia and North Korea maintain a military alliance, potentially justifying their deployment to other areas, including in Ukraine itself, said Artyom Lukin from Russia’s Far Eastern Federal University.
“Having the option of deploying them to Ukraine strengthens Moscow’s positions in the Washington-mediated ceasefire negotiations that are entering a crucial stage right now,” he said.
North Korea sent an estimated total of 14,000 troops, including 3,000 reinforcements to replace its losses, Ukrainian officials have said. Lacking armoured vehicles and drone warfare experience, they took heavy casualties but adapted quickly.
Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces said on Apr 24 that they had killed a unit of 25 North Korean soldiers in Kursk. They released a video showing one of the slain soldiers and their possessions, which included a note written in Korean.
North Korea has also supplied weapons including artillery munitions and ballistic missiles, South Korean officials have said.
For Pyongyang, the cooperation gives it greater security, Lukin said.
“After Kursk, North Korea’s security is not only based on its nukes,” he said, “it also stems from the alliance with a great military power, Russia.”
China, North Korea’s key economic benefactor which has repeatedly condemned Western backing for Ukraine, declined to comment specifically on the admission from Pyongyang.
“China’s position on the Ukraine crisis issue is consistent and clear,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.
