Russia could use North Korean troops to replace its units in border regions, freeing up Russian servicemen to be redeployed to the most active sectors of the front.
Serhii Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Volunteer Army, said this during a television broadcast.
According to Bratchuk, Russia may currently view North Korean units as a way to compensate for personnel shortages in its army.
“It is quite likely that there are 15,000–20,000, perhaps no more, combat-ready Russian troops there, and they will redeploy them as reserves from the territory of the Russian Federation to the hottest sectors of the front,” he said.
The spokesperson suggested that North Korean troops could replace Russian units currently stationed in regions bordering Ukraine.
“Obviously, the Kremlin’s attempt to use these units is aimed specifically at freeing up Russian combat units that are currently stationed in Russia’s border regions and redeploying them to the most active sectors of the Russian-Ukrainian front. The North Koreans, in turn, will replace them there,” Bratchuk said.
According to his assessment, this would primarily involve North Korean infantry and engineering and construction units. He believes they could be deployed in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions, as well as in the northwestern part of the Voronezh region.
At the same time, he noted that the question of direct participation by North Korean troops in combat operations on Ukrainian territory remains open. The language barrier would also remain one of the key challenges if Russian and North Korean units were deployed together.
