North Korean troops eye experience in Ukraine conflict
Kim Jong Un's soldiers are set to assist Russia in the war with Ukraine. "It seems that North Korea doesn't like to miss an opportunity to participate in a war and gain experience," says Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul, in an interview with The New York Times.
Since the end of the Korean War, North Korea has not participated in other major conflicts but has consistently sought opportunities to sell arms and provide military assistance to its allies. The war in Ukraine is no exception, according to The New York Times.
The newspaper recalls that the Kim dynasty sent pilots to Vietnam. North Korean pilots also assisted Egypt during the Yom Kippur War in 1973. In 2016, North Koreans went to Syria, where they fought alongside forces loyal to Bashar Al-Assad's regime.
“It's a pattern that when North Korea sells weapons to warring countries, it sends its personnel there not only to help those countries use these weapons, but often to go to war themselves. In an interview with The New York Times, it seems that North Korea doesn't like to miss an opportunity to participate in a war and gain experience,” says Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul.
Pyongyang wants to gather experience
The expert points out that if Pyongyang sends troops to Ukraine, it will be the "first serious war in decades and a chance for North Korean officers to get a sample of how modern warfare is conducted, including the use of drones." The New York Times interviewee suggests that North Korea will analyze how the knowledge gained in Ukraine can be applied on the Korean Peninsula.
Yang Mu-jin, the president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, further emphasizes that Pyongyang will use the experiences gained in Ukraine to improve its own armaments.
