N Korea escalates from arms to boots on the ground in Ukraine

North Korea is deepening its involvement in the Ukraine war, with military engineers now aiding Russia in targeting Ukraine with ballistic missiles, according to senior officials in Ukraine and South Korea quoted in a The War Zone report.

North Korean troops, including officers, have been deployed alongside Russian forces, marking the first instance of a foreign government sending uniformed troops to support Russia’s invasion. NATO nations are known to have sent military “advisors” to the Ukraine side.

The War Zone report states that North Korea benefits by testing its weaponry and gaining real-world, high-intensity combat experience. Ukraine has responded in kind by targeting North Korean ammunition depots in Russia.

Declassified US intelligence reports indicate that Russia has used North Korean short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs), including the KN-23 and KN-24, in attacks targeting Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. Since the war erupted in February 2022, North Korea has reportedly provided over a million artillery rounds to Russia.

North Korea’s support may stem from a belief that a Russian victory would set a precedent for lifting US and UN sanctions. The punitive measures have forced North Korea to rely heavily on China for its economic survival, undermining its strategic autonomy.

As North Korea has intensified its involvement by deploying troops to the war, Ukraine has retaliated by targeting these forces and disrupting supply lines.

In a Politico article this month, Ketrin Jochecova mentions that South Korea’s defense minister, Kim Yong-Hyun, confirmed reports of North Korean casualties in Ukraine, indicating that Ukrainian forces have killed North Korea’s soldiers.

While North Korea’s military personnel