North Korean soldiers blow themselves up with grenades to avoid capture – Sky News
Photo: Footage from the video of the 95th Separate Assault Brigade of Ukraine's armed forces
North Korean troops in the Russian combat zone are showing significant deficiencies in adapting to modern military conditions and are clearly unaware of the threats posed by drones and artillery. They are also refusing to surrender alive.
Sky News reported this.
As the publication notes, citing Ukrainian military sources, North Korean soldiers are carrying out mass assaults on foot in groups of 20-60 people, which makes them an easy target for drones and artillery.
The lack of tactical training is also manifested in cases of poor coordination: radio intercepts have been recorded, indicating that the DPRK mistakenly fired on Russian military positions.
North Korean fighters are also trying to remove all traces of their presence in the combat zone, removing the bodies of the dead and wounded. At the same time, they refuse to surrender, often choosing to die, for example, by blowing themselves up with grenades.
It is also likely that North Korean troops have temporarily withdrawn from the front line in Russia. This happened after North Korean soldiers suffered heavy losses.
In particular, Sky News journalists spoke with Ukrainian military personnel who believe that North Korean soldiers are currently:
- either concluding the mistakes made during the first clashes with Ukrainian soldiers,
- or caring for the wounded,
- or waiting for reinforcements.
"I think they will return soon," said the commander, who goes by the call sign "Pulse."
The Ukrainian military also noted that North Korean soldiers have better equipment than many Russians, including rifles and uniforms. Still, the North Koreans move only on foot and use golf buggies to transport ammunition.
"They were all clean-shaven and perfectly groomed, like models. All of them, without a beard, unkempt hair, or bald spots… It was also difficult to determine their age. They looked from 25 to 35, possibly up to 40 years old," Pulse said.
For reference:
According to Militarny, the Special Operations forces kicked off a counteroffensive in August, taking control of 1,100 km² in the Kursk region. However, by the year's end, enemy counterattacks had reduced the area under Ukrainian control to about 460 km².
However, the Ukrainian military inflicted significant losses on the enemy. Thus, on January 2, the defenders carried out a high-precision strike on the Russian invaders' command post in the Maryine settlement.
In addition, on January 7, in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation, operators of the 8th Regiment of the Special Operations Forces of Ukraine's armed forces destroyed 13 North Korean servicemen.
Also, on January 22, it became known that Special Operations Forces operators killed 21 and wounded 40 North Korean soldiers who were attacking Ukrainian positions.
It should be noted that according to the estimates of experts from the Institute for the Study of War, North Korean troops participating in hostilities in the Kursk region are suffering critically high losses. The entire contingent of 12 thousand service members, if the situation does not change, may be killed or wounded by mid-April 2025.
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