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Why North Korea struck a good deal in helping Russia with its war in Ukraine
Pyongyang gains from not only Moscow’s diplomatic backing but also its tech expertise and battlefield experience – all of which should worry Seoul.
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A picture from the official Korean Central News Agency showing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at a defence development exhibition in Pyongyang on Nov 21.
PHOTO: AFP
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During the Cold War, the Soviet Union sent thousands of troops and military advisers abroad to fight in foreign wars. Today, Russia – the Soviet Union’s successor state – recruits tens of thousands of foreigners to fight in its war in Ukraine.
Not a week passes by without someone spotting new foreign mercenaries fighting for Russia; the latest to join this dubious company are the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have apparently been sighted on Ukraine’s battlefields. Yet none of these foreign recruits is ever likely to be as significant as the presence of the North Korean soldiers in the Ukraine war.
