Kremlin conceals North Korean troops amid Kursk conflicts
Russia does not publicise the presence of North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region. According to analysts from ISW, this action by the Kremlin aims to conceal the personnel shortages within its own army.
The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) noted the confirmation by the Pentagon of the death of North Korean soldiers in battles against Ukraine in Russia's Kursk region.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, emphasised that the Russian military is trying to hide the presence of North Korean soldiers by prohibiting them from showing their faces during training in Russia and "concealing" them.
Is the Kremlin hiding Kim's soldiers?
ISW observed that Russian officials and propagandists do not admit to the presence of North Korean forces in Russia or their participation in battles in the Kursk region.
"The Kremlin will likely continue to avoid reporting on the deployment of North Korean forces in Kursk Oblast as doing so would tacitly acknowledge that Russia needs foreign troops to recapture its own territory and invalidate Russian [leader] Vladimir Putin's claims that the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast resulted in high Russian recruitment rates," analysts at ISW stated.
Units of the North Korean army that Russia engaged in the war against Ukraine were put on alert on 13th December. The Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine's Ministry of Defence reported that the command of units from North Korea received orders to cooperate with Russian troops conducting combat operations in the Kursk region. North Korean soldiers also received additional food supplies, which are partially being transported to the front lines by civilian trucks resembling water delivery vehicles.
Ukraine confirms the presence of North Korean soldiers
On 14th December, Volodymyr Zelensky officially confirmed for the first time the involvement of North Korean soldiers in offensive operations on Ukrainian positions in the Kursk region and "significant losses" on their side.
On the same day, Ukrainian military intelligence GUR reported the number of the first losses of North Korean soldiers– 200 personnel. According to intelligence, after the losses in the assaults on the Kursk region, the units of the North Korean army are being supplemented with new personnel to continue active combat operations.
