Abandoned in the Fray: North Korean Soldiers Left Stranded as Russian Armored Vehicles Make a Hasty Retreat

A Russian BTR-82 armored vehicle is seen leaving troops behind and withdrawing. X (X, old Twitter) still

A video of a Russian armored vehicle abandoning troops in Kursk Oblast, a battleground region where some of the North Korean troops sent to Russia are known to be located, has been released. US Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported, “Russia’s military is presumed to be abandoning North Korea’s military.”

According to a video released by RFA on the 2nd (local time) provided by the Ukrainian army, an armored vehicle was seen in a large field changing direction and moving at high speed when four soldiers came running in front. The soldiers continued to chase the armored vehicle, but the vehicle drove away without stopping.

Lee Il-woo, secretary general of the Independent Defense Network, told RFA, “After receiving information that North Korean troops appeared in the area under the jurisdiction of the 95th Brigade of the Ukrainian Army, they were caught on a drone camera on the 30th of’ the end. month,” adding, “Three Russian BTR-82 armored vehicles were located south of the village of Kalinov “They are attacking a wooded area 4km away, and it does not appear that their hands and’ u feet fit at all,” he explained.

A Russian BTR-82 armored vehicle is seen leaving troops behind and withdrawing. X (X, old Twitter) still

According to RFA, the armored vehicle opened cannon fire and ordered the soldiers on board to disembark, but instead of charging, the infantry fell down next to the armored vehicle and struggled. Accordingly, the armored vehicles did not protect the infantry, but changed direction and returned the way they came.

According to RFA, Director Lee claimed, “We are still analyzing the video, but it is assumed that it happened due to a lack of communication between the Russian military driving the armored vehicle and the North Korean military on board.” The explanation is that most of the North Korean soldiers sent to Russia are infantry, so they will not be familiar with the Russian army’s doctrine of handling vehicles and armored vehicles. However, it has not been confirmed whether the infantry in question were actually North Korean soldiers.
There are also persistent claims that North Korean troops stationed on the battlefield will act as so-called “bullet cannons”. Blue and Yellow, a Lithuanian civilian organization supporting Ukraine, claimed that North Korean troops engaged Ukrainian troops for the first time in the Kursk region on the 25th of last month, and that all but one had to kill.

Paris = Correspondent Jo Eun-ah achim@donga.com