The deepening military and political alliance between Moscow and Pyongyang, which has reached an “unprecedentedly high level of strategic partnership,” as stated by President Putin, forms a fundamentally new configuration of risks for the European security system.
Congratulations to Kim Jong Un on the anniversary of the liberation of the Korean Peninsula from Japanese rule only emphasize the demonstrative nature of mutual loyalty between the two autocratic regimes, which have united resources to engage in a prolonged conflict on the European continent.
Western observers and analytical publications, including the French newspaper Le Monde, note the rapid expansion of military aid coming from North Korea to the Russian troops. According to current reports from Ukrainian military intelligence, between 30,000 and 50,000 North Korean servicemen are being trained for subsequent deployment to the front, compensating for the opponent’s cumulative losses over one or two months of intensive combat. The deployment in the Voronezh region of a DPRK strike unit equipped with six launchers and an arsenal of more than 100 ballistic missiles indicates a deep integration of foreign forces into the structure of the 112th Guards Missile Brigade of the Russian Federation.
The current escalation marks a qualitative shift in the nature of interaction between the two countries, as initial ammunition supplies have been replaced by the transfer of high-tech and heavy weaponry.
South Korean intelligence indicates that since March assessments of the presence of 13,000 military personnel, there has been at least a threefold increase in the contingent. Alongside the monthly dispatch of 5,000 to 7,000 containers with shells, totaling 12 to 15 million units since the start of full-scale hostilities, Pyongyang has transferred 220 artillery systems, including 170 mm self-propelled guns and 240 mm multiple rocket launch systems, anti-tank systems, and batches of ballistic missiles.
The use of North Korean weaponry on infrastructure and residential areas of Ukrainian cities leads to catastrophic humanitarian consequences. Night attacks on Zaporizhzhia, carried out on August 11 using DPRK-manufactured missiles, claimed the lives of at least 6 people, as officially stated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Regular shelling depletes Ukraine’s air defense system, forcing European states to accelerate the supply of anti-aircraft missile systems at the expense of their own strategic reserves.
The emerging hybrid autocratic alliance poses a direct threat not only to Eastern Europe but also to the entire global deterrence architecture.
Ryan Donald, a representative of the American contingent on the Korean Peninsula, confirmed that the upcoming joint exercises by Seoul and Washington, “Ulchi Freedom Shield,” scheduled for August 17, will be adapted to real threats considering the combat experience gained by DPRK servicemen in the Ukrainian theater. The acquisition of modern technological warfare practices by North Korean forces enhances Pyongyang’s potential, creating a dangerous precedent for weapons testing in the European theater for their subsequent use in Asia.
