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

According to senior Ukrainian and South Korean officials who were quoted in a The War Zone report, North Korea is intensifying its role in the Ukraine battle. Defense engineers are now helping Russia launch nuclear missiles at Ukraine.

North Vietnamese army, including soldiers, have been deployed alongside Russian causes, marking the first example of a foreign government sending armed troops to support Russia’s war. NATO countries are known to have sent defense “advisors” to the Ukraine area.

The War Zone report claims that North Korea gains by testing its ammunition and gaining real-world, high-intensity battle knowledge. Ukraine has responded in kind by destroying Russian North Korean munitions depots. &nbsp,

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. North Korea reportedly gave Russia more than a million artillery shells since the conflict broke out in February 2022.

A Russian success may have contributed to North Korea’s support, which it believes will set precedent for the lifting of US and UN sanctions. Undermining its corporate autonomy, the punitive measures have made North Korea rely heavily on China for its financial success.

Ukraine&nbsp has retaliated by targeting these troops and disrupting supply lines as North Korea has increased its presence by sending troops to the battle.

In a Politico article this quarter, Ketrin Jochecova mentions that South Korea’s defence minister, Kim Yong-Hyun, confirmed accounts of North Vietnamese deaths in Ukraine, indicating that Ukrainian troops have killed North Korea’s men.

A June 2024 The Telegram content reveals that North Korea intended to send three of its ten executive brigades as part of an agreement under which Russia may give North Korea US$ 115 million periodically, despite the difficulty of determining the number of its military personnel in Ukraine. North Korea perhaps therefore have as many as 15, 000 men in Ukraine.

Ellie Cook and John Feng make reference in a Fortune article this month to how Ukraine has increased its crackdown on Russian munitions warehouses, particularly those that are supplied by North Korea.

Cook and Feng note that since late summers, Ukraine has struck many important websites, including a large station in Sergeevka, Voronezh and another in Soldatskoye, destroying weapons provided by North Korea.

Additionally, they say that in mid-September Ukraine targeted a station in Mariupol, followed by strikes on storage locations in Tikhoretsk and Karachev, both of which housed North Korean items.

Cook and Feng point out that the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine’s ( GUR), Main Directorate of Intelligence, has played a significant role in these operations, which aim to disrupt Russian logistics and weaken its arsenal.

However, they point out that Ukraine remains irritated by Western allies ‘ reluctance to review long-range-strike weaponry, which could further boost its potential to reach deep inside Russian place.

Ukraine’s” Victory Plan” is complicated by NATO’s continuing reluctance to give long-range weapons and the ever-present danger of Russian nuclear weapons, which are intensifying its missile strikes on warehouses full of North Korean weapons.

In September 2024, RBC-Ukraine reported that Ukraine’s Victory Plan, as outlined by Mykhailo Podolyak, assistant to the mind of Ukraine’s National Office, is a strategic framework for modern war against Russia.

Although the plan’s specifics are still ambiguous, Podolyak emphasized that a clear understanding of the necessary military equipment, quantities, and costs was needed to successfully conclude the war. He urged allies to stop feigning Russia’s propaganda about nuclear redlines and escalation and stressed the value of international support.

According to RBC-Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky intends to explain the strategy to US President Joe Biden to find out whether Ukraine’s allies are committed to a Ukrainian victory or are merely trying to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression.

Podolyak advocated for a principled decision to support Ukraine fully, warning that the cost of war with Russia would escalate if not addressed right away. According to the report, the strategy emphasizes the need for a strong, unwavering stance against Russian aggression to ensure a just and lasting resolution.

In a Politico article this month, former NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg criticized the alliance’s cautious attitude toward providing long-range munitions to Ukraine for strikes deep inside Russian territory.

Stoltenberg emphasized that despite NATO allies ‘ unmatched support for Ukraine, including cruise missiles, advanced battle tanks, and high mobility artillery rocket systems ( HIMARS ), there is still a significant debate over the use of these weapons on Russian soil.

He says NATO aims to uphold Ukraine’s right to self-defense, including targeting legitimate military sites in Russia. He points out, however, that NATO has a variety of positions, with some members imposing restrictions to stop further escalation.

Regardless of the outcome of the upcoming US presidential election, he insists that it is crucial to avoid making self-fulfilling predictions and maintain US support for Ukraine.

Reuters reported in September 2024 that Putin had announced significant changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, emphasizing that any conventional attack on Russia, supported by&nbsp, nuclear power, would be considered a joint nuclear assault.

According to the report, this change, which was made public during a UN Security Council meeting, makes things more difficult for Russia to deploy nuclear weapons.

According to Reuters, Russia’s 2020 doctrine only permitted a&nbsp, nuclear response when the state faced existential threats from conventional or nuclear attacks.

However, it points out that the updated policy now includes aggression against Russia or its ally Belarus, even with conventional weapons, as grounds for a nuclear response.

According to the report, Putin claimed that these amendments are a response to US and UK discussions allowing Ukraine to launch Western missiles against Russia.

Russia may choose to escalate in other ways besides threatening the use of nuclear weapons. Iran acting as a broker, according to a Reuters report from September 2024 that Russia is considering sending advanced P-800 Oniks anti-ship missiles to Yemeni rebels.

Despite the fact that the missiles would significantly increase the Houthis ‘ ability to threaten commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea, Russia has not yet made the transfer.