Brutal, ‘brave’ and unrelenting: the North Korean troops fighting Ukraine

Around 4,000 of the 11,000-men contingent North Korea sent to Russia last year are thought to have died already, with more losses expected

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North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang. Photo: AP

Published: 1:01pm, 3 Feb 2025

North Korea’s soldiers are relentless, almost fanatical, in the face of death. They’re determined and capable in battle, even in an unfamiliar fight, and their tactics are outdated but brutal.

That is what the West has been learning from watching Kim Jong-un’s army in action after Russian President Vladimir Putin called on the North Korean leader to supply fighters for his war on Ukraine.

Pyongyang deployed 11,000 men to Kursk in November disguised as Russian soldiers and carrying fake IDs. These troops are largely special operations forces, meaning they are more ardent in their beliefs and better trained than other units.

Russia has been pushing the North Koreans headlong into bloody assaults. The costs are high, but Kim’s army is learning an important lesson in return: how to fight a modern war.

This war is North Korea’s largest military deployment to a foreign conflict in its almost 80-year history. Read on to learn what the West is learning from this moment, based on publicly released intelligence, Ukrainians’ observations and interviews with experts who have been closely following the conflict.

Ukrainian servicemen sit atop a tank in the Zaporizhzhia region last month. Photo: Reuters

Ukrainian and South Korean intelligence services have said that many of the troops that deployed to Russia are some of Pyongyang’s best, drawn from the 11th Corps, also known as the Storm Corps. The unit is trained in infiltration, infrastructure sabotage, and assassinations.