North Korean soldiers have reportedly arrived in Eastern Russia for combat training before moving into Ukraine in support of Russia. The arrival of the North Koreans coincides with Ukraine announcing a new draft to continue its war with Russia as the Russians gain the upper hand.
“We are in act with our North Korean friends … we will see how that process develops,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
The deepening of ties between Russia and North Korea is part of the observable realignment of many world powers against the United States. China, North Korea and Iran have all shown, or provided, support for Russia in its war with Ukraine.
The number of North Korean troops in Russia and Ukraine is estimated to be around 10,000. Amid this, the Ukranian government has announced a new draft of 160,000 new soldiers.
The source of Ukraine’s new draft is questionable considering the dire state of Ukrainian manpower according to leaked French military reports from earlier this year. Last April, Ukraine lowered its minimum age of conscription from 27 to 25 for the draft.
Russia has also recently announced that it has claimed the town of Selydove, a key town in their offensive in the Donetsk region, which is in Eastern Ukraine. Further exacerbating Russia’s gains and Ukraine’s losses has been a mass desertion of Ukrainian troops.
“I will not tell you the [exact] number of people who deserted and went AWOL, but I will say it is over 100,000,” Ukrainian Member of Parliament, Anna Skorokhod, said.
However, as a possible result of the changes in the balance of power, but also from the high cost on both sides, talks of de-escalation have reportedly been taking place.
“In other words: we do not attack their energy; they do not attack our energy. Does this lead to the end of the hot stage? I think so. Because this is a part of the war that is very dangerous for us,” Zelensky told reporters.
Both sides have been targeting energy infrastructure, with Russia largely decimating Ukraine’s energy grid, and Ukraine targeting Russia’s oil refining capabilities. With the high energy cost of this aspect of the war, both sides seem willing to negotiate.
If the negotiations succeed it will mark a major point of de-escalation in the war. However, the hostilities show no sign of stopping soon.
U.S. officials have made clear that the U.S. supports Ukraine’s capability to defend itself from foreign threats that extend to the North Koreans. President Biden has also expressed concern about the North Korean presence in Ukraine.
“The weapons and capabilities that the United States, and other International Partners, have provided to Ukraine are Ukrainian weapons and Ukrainian capabilities, and we’ve been very clear that Ukraine is able to employ those capabilities to defend their Sovereign territory from threats,” Major General Patrick Ryder said.
Tensions will rise as the war in Ukraine continues. This global volatility has been added to by conflicts in the Middle East as well as many other points of contention between world powers.
