North Korean soldiers used by Russia are reportedly turning to alcohol and getting drunk while fighting the war against Ukraine.
Troops dispatched by Pyongyang to support Russian forces in southern Russia reportedly got drunk on New Year’s Eve, according to Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence.
The agency revealed instances of alcohol abuse among the North Korean troops, including those engaged in combat operations, in a post on messaging app Telegram.
Despite being subjected to Russian propaganda emphasising the importance of their support for Moscow’s war effort, the fighting spirit of the North Korean soldiers has allegedly plummeted.
The GUR also reported that these soldiers were involved in battles in Kursk between December 31 and January 1, suffering “significant” casualties.
Since Kyiv’s surprise attack in August 2024, Moscow has been attempting to reclaim a portion of territory in Kursk from Ukrainian control.
Following a mutual defence pact signed between Russia and North Korea in June last year, Pyongyang has supplied a substantial number of missiles and munitions for Russia’s war effort.
Russian commanders are reportedly deploying fresh North Korean troops to the front line in Kursk, including the village of Ulanok, southeast of Sudzha.
Despite losing control over other parts of Kursk, Kyiv still maintains control over Sudzha, which it claimed in the early days of the offensive in August.
North Korean troops have been stationed in Fanaseevka and Cherkasskaya Konopelka, just west of Ulanok, according to the GUR.
The Pentagon has confirmed that an estimated 1,000 North Korean soldiers have suffered casualties in Kursk. Volodymyr Zelensky previously reported on December 23 that North Korea had incurred 3,000 losses in the region.
He disclosed that Ukrainian forces had taken “several” North Korean soldiers prisoner, though they were “seriously wounded and could not be resuscitated”.
Intelligence sources from Ukraine, the United States, and South Korea had revealed that between 10,000 and 12,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia in October to engage with Ukrainian forces in the Kursk border area.
NATO has labelled the involvement of North Korean soldiers as a “significant escalation” and a “dangerous expansion” of what is Europe’s most extensive land conflict since the Second World War.
