The National Intelligence Service of the Republic of Korea has released satellite imagery that purportedly shows North Korean troops at the Sergeevka training ground in Primorsky Krai, near Vladivostok, and at a military facility in Khabarovsk.
It’s claimed that additional DPRK contingents are stationed at Blagoveshchensk. Reportedly, before being deployed to Russia, North Korean troops were trained in North Korea under the personal supervision of Kim Jong-un.
The photo of the military facility in Ussuriysk allegedly shows about 400 North Korean soldiers on the parade ground, while the photo of the military facility in Khabarovsk shows about 240 North Korean soldiers during training.
Approximately 1,500 North Korean special forces were initially transported to Russia, with more expected in subsequent deployments. The total number being bandied in various reports alludes to 12,000 soldiers being prepared for deployment.
If true, Russia’s strategic partnership with North Korea has acquired serious dimensions.
It’s being alleged, once again without any corroborating evidence, that the troops are being trained and equipped with Russian military gear, including uniforms and possibly fake identification, to blend in with Russian forces.
If indeed North Korean troop contingents are being deployed to training facilities in Russia for training and eventual integration with Russian forces, the impact on the conflict underway could be significant.
Whether it would be escalatory or not would depend on how and when Russia deploys North Korean troops. Most likely, for reasons discussed below, the Russian intent would be to hold them as reserves, not deploy them on the battlefront.
Russia has so far conducted its Special Military Operation in Ukraine with subdued intensity. The West’s “Russia’s all-out war against Ukraine” rhetoric notwithstanding, Russia has not employed the full force of its military might at any time since the start of the SMO.
Russia is using the combination of time and deterrence to achieve its military goals. It’s using minimum forces so that it can take on NATO at any time.
It relies on its wealth of natural resources, outstanding manufacturing capabilities, world-class engineering skills, and people’s resilience to slowly but inexorably overwhelm its adversary, deterring NATO intervention with its reserve conventional military power.
Source: Eurasian Times
