Russian Soldier: North Korean Fighters Wanted to be Visually Impressive in Their Offensive Tactic

According to data from South Korea's National Intelligence Service, a total of 15,000 North Korean soldiers have fought on Russia's side. The total number of killed and wounded North Korean military personnel has reached 4,700, Reuters reports. It is noted that around 600 soldiers did not survive the fighting near Kursk.

Challenges in Cooperation Between Russian and North Korean Forces

A Russian Armed Forces fighter with the call sign Kondrat shared that the most difficult task for Russian instructors was to explain assault tactics to the North Korean troops deployed near Kursk. They initially wanted to attack in large, "visually impressive" formations, and it was difficult to dissuade them from this.

"But once real combat began, they quickly realized that wouldn't get them far. They adapted on the fly to operating in small groups, which delivered results," he said.

Additionally, there was a language barrier. However, this problem was soon overcome when North Korean soldiers learned a cheat sheet with about twenty Russian words and were able to train without interpreters.

The cheat sheet included commands like "Stop!", "Take cover", "Cover me", and "Fire". The sheet showed both the Russian commands and their Korean phonetic transcriptions.

Shared Traits Between Russian and North Korean Soldiers

Andrey Kolesnik, a member of the State Duma's Defense Committee, stated that DPRK fighters were distinguished by their resilience, fearlessness, and willpower-qualities that remind him of Russian soldiers. According to him, the combat hardened their warrior spirit and gave them invaluable battlefield experience.

"The Korean fighters proved themselves right away. Our guys brought them up to their level. They're not cowards-brave guys, brave warriors. They're gaining combat experience too, which they'll take back to North Korea," the lawmaker said.

Lee Sung Kwon, a member of South Korea's parliamentary intelligence committee, also stated that the combat capability of the DPRK soldiers significantly increased during the fighting in the Kursk region. He noted that the troops improved their skills, particularly in using new types of weaponry, such as drones.

It was also said that the North Korean soldiers were mostly between 23 and 27 years old and were physically well-prepared.