Intelligence sources say a battalion of 3,000 has been secretly training to fight against Ukraine

A battalion of 3,000 North Korean soldiers will shortly join Russian troops in fighting Ukraine, marking Pyongyang’s full entry into the war.

Intelligence sources said the unit has been secretly training in Russia’s Far East ahead of deployment as part of a Russian airborne regiment.

“They are called the Buryat Battalion,” a senior Ukrainian military source told Politico. Buryatia is a remote region of Russia bordering Mongolia that the Kremlin has targeted heavily for military recruitment.

The Kyiv Independent quoted another Western intelligence source claiming that North Korea had sent 10,000 soldiers to join the Russian army.

(…)

      • Montagge@lemmy.zipEnglish
        621·
        2 months ago

        If the invasion of Ukraine hasn’t taught everyone that the only way to not get invaded is to have nukes I don’t know what will.

        • gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          71·
          2 months ago

          Seriously - I’m genuinely baffled at the complete geopolitical ineptitude that occurred in 2014. It was a categorical abrogation of the Budapest Memorandum, which guaranteed Ukrainian territorial integrity and sovereignty in exchange for their surrender of old Soviet nukes based in their territory.

          Nobody is going to make a deal like that going forward. The nuclear non-proliferation movement is entirely dead. Nukes are, categorically, the absolute final word in guaranteeing a country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. There is no substitute. Genuinely, the complete and total lack of meaningful action in the defense of Ukraine was the most apocalyptically stupid geopolitical move that Obama and Merkel made during their stints as leaders of the western world.

        • Cethin@lemmy.zipEnglish
          113·
          2 months ago

          Honestly, no it’s also done the opposite. Ukraine has passed so many of Russia’s “red lines” that it shows nukes are useless too. The only time a nuke is useful is when you’ve already lost. If you use one then you get a lot of other groups attacking you, and potentially you get nuked yourself. You can’t actually really use one in defence.

          The only way to not be invaded is to be stronger than your potential opponents. Si vis pacem, para bellum. (If you want peace, prepare for war.)

          • frezikEnglish
            5·
            2 months ago

            Russia has some odd game theory incentives because their nukes probably haven’t been well maintained. Now, the rest of the world has to assume they work. The consequences of being wrong about that are too great. However, if Russia actually launched a nuke and it fizzles, that’s a pretty good indication that their nukes don’t work in general. It’s therefore in Russia’s best interest to keep pretending that it will launch a nuke, but never do it because that would remove all doubt.

            And then they’re fucked. With the nuclear taboo broken–fizzle or not–nobody will complain when NATO gets directly involved in conventional ways.

        • Fedizen@lemmy.worldEnglish
          31·
          2 months ago

          good point. Loading up ukraine with nukes would have created a serious problem for russia. The problem is it would have given Ukraine independence from the US as well.

  • Saff@lemmy.mlEnglish
    1054·
    2 months ago

    Any North Korean soldiers captured should be held prisoner in some Scandinavian prison and fed nothing but the most decadent and tasty foods. Then when the war is over send them back to NK fatter than Kim Jon Un. That would be a real power play.

      • lengauEnglish
        452·
        2 months ago

        If meatballs and mashed potatoes with lingonberry sauce are against the Geneva convention it’s probably time we had on Oslo convention.

      • EpeeGnome@lemm.eeEnglish
        8·
        2 months ago

        You’re thinking of Scandinavian regional delicacies and certain seasonal special dishes, none of which I’ve ever had the misfortune of smelling, and serving those to prisoners does sound pretty inhumane. All Scandinavian food outside of those that I’ve tried or heard of tasted or sounded delicious.

      • kent_eh@lemmy.caEnglish
        61·
        2 months ago

        There’s more to Scandinavian food than lutefisk, y’know.

        • frezikEnglish
          4·
          2 months ago

          Married into a Scandinavian family. Scandinavian baked goods are amazing.

  • Kbobabob@lemmy.worldEnglish
    775·
    2 months ago

    Lmao, I just saw an article on here about NK soldiers abandoning the front lines. That didn’t last long

    • WanderingVentra@lemm.eeEnglish
      356·
      2 months ago

      Why fight die for some other country’s pointless war? If I was there, I’d leave, too.

      I’d also encourage any US troops who are sent off to fight for Israel in the future to do the same lol.

    • sqibkw@lemmy.worldEnglish
      413·
      2 months ago

      Unfortunately many North Koreans already leave the country to work as slaves for construction companies, factories, etc (including in Europe). Generally they only allow people out who have families back home to be tortured/killed in case they defect.

      They will probably get some, but less than you might expect.

      • Maggoty@lemmy.worldEnglish
        223·
        2 months ago

        There’s a pretty big difference between construction work and human wave tactics in a warzone. Different levels of motivation to defect.

        • ammonium@lemmy.worldEnglish
          271·
          2 months ago

          And different opportunities, going MIA on a construction site is suspicious, but during war? Who can tell whether they defected or died?

  • Maggoty@lemmy.worldEnglish
    493·
    2 months ago

    What Russia likes about North Korean Soldiers in Ukraine: Manpower!

    What North Korea likes about North Korean Soldiers in Ukraine: Money!

    What North Korean Soldiers like about North Korean Soldiers in Ukraine: Freedom!

    • ByteOnBikes@slrpnk.netEnglish
      291·
      2 months ago

      I mean why wouldn’t they?

      Koreans have no beef with Ukraine. They’re fighting in a war for a paycheck.

      But they’re probably seeing wartorn Ukraine, with bombed out buildings and roads, and going, “Well shit this place looks better than home” and leaving.

      • And009@reddthat.comEnglish
        7·
        2 months ago

        Fighting in war for paycheck

        Kim doesn’t operate that way, he’s got of a ‘don’t die or I’ll kill your family and put the relatives in jail’ energy

  • thatKamGuy@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    362·
    2 months ago

    With the current attrition rate of Russian forces, these 3K troops will likely be expended in ~2.3 days…

  • Valmond@lemmy.worldEnglish
    406·
    2 months ago

    The great Russian army. The great russian army with the best weapons and tanks and soldiers.

    What a paper tiger.

    BTW it’s rumored that they are running out of both tanks and bmps. If trump doesn’t win (if he does, it will just take longer) the whole russia will collapse like the soviet union did in 1991. The ruble is already in free fall, inflation at 20%, the economy is overheating and fewer and fewer young people left to work or be killed.

    I just hope it crumbles as soon as possible but I guess this insane war has to drag on for some 6 months to a year.

    • blackn1ght@feddit.ukEnglish
      201·
      2 months ago

      BTW it’s rumored that they are running out of both tanks and bmps.

      I feel like people have been saying this for about 2 years. We should believe it when we see it.

    • realitista@lemm.eeEnglish
      142·
      2 months ago

      Dictatorships can take a lot of abuse before falling apart. Look at North Korea. People are starving and still that fuckers in power.

  • NocturnalMorning@lemmy.worldEnglish
    341·
    2 months ago

    Hopefully this isn’t the stsrt of turning this into a larger conflict that spills into other countries.

  • Etterra@lemmy.worldEnglish
    7·
    2 months ago

    Translation: Putin needs more people for the meat grinder without making his people madder at him.

  • Zron@lemmy.worldEnglish
    3·
    2 months ago

    Man this three day special military operation has kind of gotten out of hand.