Going to fight in Ukraine, serving as bait and dying for the supreme leader: this is what is expected of the thousands of North Korean soldiers sent by Pyongyang to the Kursk front, according to a notebook found on the corpse of a serving fighter by Kim Jong-un. These brutal tactics have already reportedly caused the deaths of thousands of soldiers indoctrinated by the North Korean regime, who have little hope of ever returning home.
A notebook revealing North Korean methods
The engagement of North Korean forces in Ukraine marks a major turning point in the conflict. Foreign nationals had until now engaged in both camps, for ideological reasons or material reasons, such as the promise of acquiring Russian nationality. Moscow, lacking soldiers to send, has also kidnapped numerous migrants, mainly from Central Asia, to deploy them on the front line.
Kim Jong-un’s choice to send 12,000 men to support the Russian army in the Kursk region has much more important consequences: it marks the first intervention of foreign soldiers in the conflict, opening the door to the engagement of other countries in the war in Ukraine. The use of North Korean men on the front is now undeniable: kyiv has captured two fighters whom it offers to exchange for Ukrainian prisoners.
If this support is a relief for Vladimir Putin, the impact of these soldiers lacking experience is still difficult to assess. The tactics used by these soldiers would also expose them to heavy human losses, if we are to believe a notebook recovered from the body of a North Korean on December 21, published by Ukrainian special forces and translated by Wall Street Newspaper. We can see a drawing showing a man being used as “bait” to attract a drone, so that two other soldiers can shoot it down.
Weapons used in the war in Ukraine
The sentences that accompany these drawings reveal the state of indoctrination of the soldiers sent to their death by Pyongyang. “Even if it costs me my life, I will carry out the orders of the Supreme Commander without hesitation”can we for example read: “I will show the world the bravery and sacrifice of Kim Jong-un’s special forces”.
A very significant human cost
These tactics are reminiscent of the methods of the Russian army, which places little importance on the survival of its soldiers. The example of Bakhmout, captured in May 2023, is eloquent: Moscow used prisoners, allowing the capture of the city at the cost of heavy human losses, the soldiers being sent in successive waves. According to Evgeni Prigojine, 20,000 members of Wagner lost their lives during this battle, due to often suicidal attacks.
Despite mounting losses, Russian forces continued to employ similar methods, eventually achieving real successes in eastern Ukraine, where fortified areas have been falling one after another since the second half of the year. 2024.
North Korea’s human reserves, however, are much lower than those of Russia. According to the Wall Street Journal, citing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, around 4,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed or injured since December 2024. A catastrophic toll as Russia struggles to retake areas of the Kursk region occupied by kyiv since august. The reconquest of this Russian territory is vital for Moscow, in order to prevent its use by kyiv as a bargaining chip in the event of peace negotiations. The Kremlin could, however, run out of North Korean soldiers before reaching this goal.
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