North Korea accompanies them and not only with troops

Since the Russian invasion in Ukraine began, a doubt has remained despite the apparent evidence. Neither The videosneither The testimoniesnot even the capture of prisoners North Korea by Ukraine ended up confirming the entire planet that, indeed, Pyongyang was fighting with Moscow. That moment of doubt has come to an end. Both nations They have confirmed How far their ties arrive.

It is official. After months of rumors, Russia and North Korea They confirmed publicly that North Korean troops have been fighting on Russian soil next to Moscow’s forces in the war against Ukraine. The announcement, almost simultaneously by Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, celebrated the role of thousands of North Korean soldiers who, according to both leaders, contributed decisively to the “complete release” of the Russian border region of Kursk, a territory that had been briefly occupied by Ukrainian troops during the previous summer.

So and according to the figures that move, North Korea has already sent about 14,000 soldiersmainly special forces, and replaced to more than 4,000 That, according to southern Korea estimates, they have died or results injured since 2023. But there is much more, since other military personnel, Pyongyang has supplied Millions of projectiles of artillery and ballistic missiles that Moscow has used against Ukrainian cities.

Common objective. The joint recognition of this collaboration marks not only a military intensification but also diplomatic, at a time when both nations seek reinforce your position International against the United States. For Russia, the direct involvement of foreign troops allows you to snatch an important negotiation resource (Kursk’s partial control) just when Trump presses by a rapid resolution of the conflict.

For North Korea, having poured blood on the Russian battlefield creates a kind of symbolic and political debt In Putin, expanding the margin of Kim Jong-un maneuver in future negotiations with Washington, including its stagnant nuclear program.

Symbolism and propaganda. He counted The New York Times That in North Korea, Kim ordered to erect a monument in honor of fallen soldiers in Russia, a gesture that seeks to institutionalize this alliance as a brotherhood sealed by military sacrifice. Putin, meanwhile, exalted Korean fighters as decent heroes The same recognition as its Russian peers, a statement aimed at strengthening the internal narrative of the Kremlin and to consolidate an international cooperation that is increasingly depending on authoritarian regimes.

The alliance is based not only on tactical interests but also on concrete benefits: North Korea, subject to hard sanctions, would be receiving in return Direct financial aid and Advanced military technologies that could improve their arms capacity. According to experts, it is not ruled out that Pyongyang Send more troops or expand your presence in the conflict with the aim of deepening your strategic links with Moscow.

A clandestine arsenal. According to the Guardian And focused on arms aid, the use of a North Korean ballistic missile in a Russian attack that left 12 dead in kyiv had already put the depth of this collaboration in the foreground. It was a KN-23 missileendowed with an eyelet of up to a ton, which according to the Ukrainian Intelligence Services and South Koreans is part of a broader delivery of at least 148 kn-23 missiles and KN-24 Sent by Pyongyang since the late 2023.

To this is added the supply of millions of artillery projectiles, multiple launch rockets and long -range artillery systems, which have reached the front through 64 maritime and railway shipments carefully tracked, representing Up to 70% of the weapons Artillery used by Russia on some fronts.

War as a test field. It is another of the slopes of this alliance. The British environment explained that beyond the quantitative, the North Korean contribution has a strategic value that exceeds the simple replacement of obsolete reserves: many of these weapons are modern, and their deployment in Ukraine offers the Kim Jong-a regime Real Laboratory to Test and perfect its military technology.

Missiles of the Hwasong-11 seriesself -propelled mortars and multiple pitchers not only reinforce the Russian offensive, but allow North Korea to evaluate the fight in combat of their own weapons systems. As the war extends, analysts of the Stimson Center and Network Nuclear Open foreseen a escalation in the arms supplyincluding anti -tank missiles, joint development drones and anti -aircraft systems that are already being studied for future deliveries.

Barter geopolitics. For experts as Hugh Griffithsformer member of the UN sanctions monitoring panel, without the help of Kim Jong-un, Putin could not sustain his current offensive. In exchange for sending weapons and soldiers, Pyongyang I would be receiving Strategic components and technical knowledge that could transform their own offensive abilities, both in the Korean Peninsula and outside it.

Redrawing the balances. In short, this war cooperation Between two of the most isolated regimes in the world represents a new chapter in the Ukraine War, one that acquires an increasingly internationalized dimension. While Ukraine disputes the narrative about Kursk control And it maintains the hope of using that land as a currency in peace negotiations, North Korean involvement transforms that front into a symbol of Global rearrangement of alliances.

By participating directly in the European conflict, Pyongyang is not only positioned as a more ambitious military actor, but also redouble your challenge to the international order led by the West. In the background and between the lines, what is consolidated is a Moscow -Pyongyang axis with long -term implications for regional security in Asia, European stability and the already tense pulse between the United States, China, Russia and their respective allies.

Image | The Presidential Press and Information Office

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