October 31, 2024: South Korea reports that North Korea has sent 1,500 of its soldiers to fight alongside Russian troops. About 10,000 more North Korean soldiers are to follow. The North Koreans are wearing Russian uniforms and using Russian weapons. Russia and North Korea are providing bilingual officers who speak Korean and Russian. North Korea also sent a morale officer to encourage the troops to do their duty and help a useful North Korean ally. The soldiers headed for Ukraine usually travel by air in Russian transports.

Because of the language differences, the North Korean troops will probably serve together in two or three independent brigades. It appears that a decision has not been made yet. Aside from a few commando operations, North Korean soldiers have not been at war for 71 years. The Korean War with UN forces ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty, in 1953. Back then China and Russia were North Korea’s main backers. Russia sent munitions and China was forced to send half a million soldiers to prevent North Korea from being overrun in 1952 after the initial North Korean attack force of 75,000 troops and several T-34 tanks was counterattacked. American soldiers and marines responded within a month. UN forces began arriving a few months later.

Since 2022 Russia has been purchasing thousands of missiles and other weapons from North Korea and paying in cash and food. North Korea desperately needs both of those forms of payment. Russia and Ukraine are two of the largest food exporters in the world and, despite the Russian invasion, Ukraine continues to export food, as does Russia. Because Russia needs North Korean weapons and soldiers, food exports to North Korea were increased. This has alleviated another bad year for North Korean farmers. South Korea has spent billions to improve South Korean agriculture. As one of the wealthiest nations in the world, South Korea can import all the food it needs.

China frequently sends food aid to North Korea but over the last few years Chinese food production has slumped because of floods and other natural disasters. China is also wealthy and can afford to import more food. At the same time China is sending less food to North Korea.

Russia stepped in with more food that is paid for with North Korean weapons and soldiers. North Korea has lots of soldiers to lease to Russia. The North Korean armed forces (Inmun Gun) have about 800,000 soldiers but are considered by American and South Korean intelligence agencies as ineffective because of corruption, famine and lack of money to maintain their aging weapons and equipment.

The North Korean Army currently has most of its weapons pointed south and stationed on or near the DMZ. North Korea has the means to be dangerous, for a little while anyway. Fuel shortages, elderly equipment and lack of maintenance means that a lot of this gear would not stay operational for long. As an example, the past 30 years or so of deferred or no maintenance on tube artillery pieces, including the guns on tanks, means almost all of those can only fire one round because their recuperator seals have deteriorated so much.

North Korea has two armored divisions, 12 motorized infantry and 23 non-motorized infantry divisions used only for static defense along the DMZ. These troops also serve as border guards to prevent civilians or soldiers from leaving the country via the DMZ.

Most of the best educated North Korean troops are in the rear areas, where their parents, bribes and instinct for self-preservation put them. The troops along the DMZ know this and are expected to lose some of their enthusiasm as a result. A growing number of North Korean refugees arriving in South Korea, who served along the northern side of the DMZ, confirm all this. They also confirm that the growing culture of corruption in the military leadership and bureaucracy is seeing more and more of the food and fuel meant for front line troops diverted by corrupt officers and sold in the markets. No wonder so many parents are willing to pay bribes to make sure their sons never get assigned to one of those units.

The Russian need for weapons and troops have, for the moment, saved North Korea and its threadbare military. Russia is bankrupting itself to sustain its military effort in Ukraine, where the Ukrainians still receive massive military and economic aid from NATO countries. Russia thought the additional North Korean troops would help but has discovered that many of the North Koreans are more interested in defecting to NATO nations or Ukraine than in fighting Ukrainians. Russia may decide to just use the North Koreans as rear area support troops. There is a need for troops to help with supply and engineering work. The North Koreans would still be in a combat zone but it would not be as dangerous. The North Koreans would not be as desperate to desert and avoid the horrific losses Russian troops are suffering.