North Korean drone operators deploy to Russia for potential strikes inside Ukraine
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Russian and North Korean dictators Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un meet in Pyongyang, June 19, 2024 (Photo: Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS)
A new deployment of North Korean troops in Russia, currently totaling 8,500 personnel, includes a specialized drone unit capable of launching attacks inside Ukraine, CNN reported on August 21, citing Deputy Head of Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Vadym Skibitskiy.
Skibitskiy said the North Korean troops already deployed are spread mostly in Russia’s Kursk Oblast and include a thousand engineers and deminers. They also comprise 400 drone operators, many of whom have gained experience either in or from previous North Korean deployments, and whose drones will likely be used to both survey and attack targets inside Ukraine.
Ukrainian intelligence suggests North Korean troops sent to Russia will not fight on Ukrainian territory, but will reinforce Russia’s rear positions, freeing up Russian troops for assaults inside Ukraine.
Skibitskiy added that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin may ask North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un to contribute 50,000 more troops.
Although Ukraine first warned that North Korean troops were using attack drones on their territory last October, this is the first indication the new wave of troops will have this capability, CNN wrote.
On top of Putin’s likely request for more troops, some 25,000 North Koreans have so far been deployed or rotated through Russia’s military, Skibitskiy said.
He said that before August last year, at least 150 KN 23 or KN 24 ballistic missiles had been sent by North Korea for use inside Ukraine, and another 120 were promised. 40 of those have been delivered, Skibitskiy said, and two are suspected to have been used in Radushne near Kryvyi Rih on July 30 in an attack that killed at least four children from the same family.
About 90 personnel have been sent to Voronzeh to assist with missile launches, he said. In return for supplying Russia with manpower and munitions, North Korea has asked for the Russian S400 air defence system and has already received a Pantsir 1 surface to air missile launcher, Skibitskiy added.
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