North Korean Troops Are Still Fighting for Russia—and Learning Drone Warfare on Ukraine’s Border

North Korean military personnel continue to take part in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, fighting alongside Russian forces and gaining hands-on experience in modern combat, according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense (HUR) on February 4.

North Korean troops are currently deployed in Russia’s Kursk region, from where Russian forces regularly launch attacks against Ukrainian border communities.

Ukrainian intelligence reports that North Korean soldiers are directly involved in combat operations, including firing tube artillery and multiple-launch rocket systems, conducting aerial reconnaissance, performing artillery spotting, and adjusting rocket strikes.

A central objective of Pyongyang’s participation, HUR said, is the acquisition of drone warfare skills and practical experience in conducting 21st-century combat operations—a focus that Ukrainian officials describe as one of the defining features of North Korea’s involvement in the war.

As part of ongoing agreements between Moscow and Pyongyang, regular rotations of North Korean troops are taking place in the Kursk region. Since the beginning of the deployment, approximately 3,000 North Korean soldiers have already returned home after completing combat tours, according to Ukrainian intelligence.

Most of those returning troops are reportedly transitioning into military instructor roles, where they pass on battlefield experience—including the use of drones, artillery coordination, and modern reconnaissance techniques—to the wider North Korean armed forces.

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War in Ukraine

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“Artillery strikes and drone operations—this is how Russia is using the North Korean military contingent in its war against Ukraine,” Ukraine’s military intelligence stated.

HUR emphasized that North Korea’s participation goes beyond symbolic support, describing it as a systematic effort to transform real combat experience in Ukraine into institutional knowledge for Pyongyang’s military.

Earlier, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un instructed North Korean troops deployed to Russia’s war in Ukraine to kill themselves with grenades rather than risk capture.

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