DPRK strike threat on South Korea: Expert explains provocations
Photo: Kim Jong Un, leader of the DPRK (Getty Images)
North Korea may be planning provocations on the border with South Korea. This may be done to see how the West will react, says Oleksandr Kraev, an expert at the Foreign Policy Council Ukrainian Prism.
According to the expert, what is currently happening on the Korean peninsula has been going on for decades. He notes that the deployment of North Korean troops on the border is not the biggest provocation in a very long time. Especially if we take into account the period since 2022.
“That is, now we are not talking about actually starting a war or starting a conflict. North Korea, together with its Russian allies and partners, is trying to see at what point the West will react. And it is also very important, and here we have left a cliffhanger, at what point China begins to react,” Kraev says.
According to him, Kim Jong Un's regime has now set a course for a certain confrontation with China. In particular, North Korea wants to break out into slightly more independent economic waters, so the DPRK needs to understand who, what, and at what point will do in response to their provocations.
As for the possible participation of North Korean troops in the Russian-Ukrainian war, the expert believes that North Korea is also testing its limits.
“So, again, China keeps repeating that it is not interested in expanding, as they call the situation. They are not interested in bringing in new parties. They keep saying that their key issue is the peace formula, that no one should give weapons, and no one should give troops. And here North Korea says, we are giving weapons and we will give troops. That is, this is also a test of the limits of what is permissible, but within the framework of Chinese foreign policy, and not exclusively of the West,” he emphasizes.
DPRK troops in Russia
In early summer, Putin and Kim Jong Un signed a strategic partnership agreement that provides for mutual support in case of aggression. Putin also tried to convince Kim to establish diplomatic missions in occupied Donetsk and Luhansk. Pentagon expresses concern, warning that North Korean troops could be used as cannon fodder in Ukraine
According to RBC-Ukraine's sources, more than 20 occupants were recently killed in a strike near Donetsk. Among them are military personnel from North Korea. Subsequently, RBC-Ukraine wrote about how many troops North Korea could send to Ukraine to help the Russians.
Also, according to the Washington Post, several thousand soldiers from North Korea are currently undergoing training in Russia. And by the end of the year, they may be deployed to the front in Ukraine.
