Estonian intelligence assesses whether North Korean troops can be effective in war against Ukraine

The North Korean military is designed to fight on the Korean Peninsula and not to be deployed abroad,

Mark Cancian, senior adviser to the international security program at the US think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told DW

Kim is not stupid. He knows that Putin needs both the ammunition and the troops from North Korea. So why not ask for a higher price?"

Cha said

It would be different if North Korea retained command of its deployed soldiers, either alone or together with Russia,

said Kress

Europe has traditionally been North Korea's gateway to the West and was seen by Pyongyang as more 'neutral' than the United States,

he added

It is our sovereign decision."

Russian President

The axis of evil is active. Who can guarantee that North Korean soldiers won't be deployed in the Baltic States in a few years' time or that the Chinese won't buy them in to attack Taiwan?"

she said

Ukraine will effectively be forced to fight against North Korea in Europe,

he said

If Russia had sole command, the actions of these soldiers would be solely attributable to Russia under international law,

he said

We believe that many [of the North Koreans] will desert their posts to defect, most likely to try and reach South Korea,

said the Ukrainian commander

Russian dogs rushed us to attack," but that the Ukrainians had "covered us in artillery and drones".

One severely wounded survivor who is now being treated in a field hospital said

Kim Jong-un gave us orders that we should invariably and powerfully support and provide assistance to the Russian army their holy war."

Choe Son Hui, North Korea's foreign minister who met Kremlin’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov in Moscow today, said

It is expected that North Korea has promised to send between 10,000 and 12,000 troops, including 500 officers and three generals, to the Russian Federation. The arrival of North Korean soldiers on the Ukrainian front is likely to be gradual. The deployment of the next North Korean units to the Ukrainian front will take place in the coming weeks,

the Estonian intelligence official said

And their training does not include combat operations in such conditions. The training they receive in the Russian Federation is certainly not of a very high level. Therefore, we can expect North Korean units to suffer heavy losses in Ukraine, and likely even more losses than Russian forces have suffered so far,

Kiviselg said

Nevertheless, the current intelligence assessment remains that this deployment of North Korean units in Ukraine will continue,

he said

However, if this additional deployment of units to Russia, along with their training and subsequent arrival on the Ukrainian front, continues over the long term, it could indeed bring some changes to the front line,

he concluded

There were about 40 of us but all are dead. I am left alone. I have nothing to lose,

he said in a video shared on X by pro-Ukrainian user Jürgen Nauditt

This is concerning because it portends in the future that if Russian technology does end up in North Korea's direction, then (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un will be able to accelerate the scope and sophistication of his missile capabilities,

he told CNA’s East Asia Tonight programme

This just clarifies, in some sense, that the Indo Pacific and Euro Atlantic theatres are linked in some way,

said Richey

China has a dilemma. Up until now, China has been much more important to North Korea than Russia has,

he noted

The North Koreans are stopgap. (Russian President Vladimir) Putin has been losing... huge numbers of troops on the ground,

he said