‘The first step to a world war’: Group of North Korean soldiers sent to Russia immediately flee the frontlines

Russia’s plan with Kim Jong Un has been heralded as “the first step to a world war”, but it appears their partnership is off to a rocky start.

Russia’s military is juggling multiple headaches in its gruelling war in Ukraine, with reports now emerging of a wild man hunt for deserted soldiers on the frontlines.

Only, it’s not Russian soldiers this time.

Earlier this year we saw Vladimir Putin travel to North Korea in a bid to strengthen relations with Kim Jong Un.

Both leaders are in the bad books with the West due to their alleged humanitarian offences, and have now loosely banded together to meet mutual goals.

In the months after Putin’s visit, reports of North Korean soldiers being flown over to the Ukrainian frontlines began to filter through the world press.

The Kremlin immediately moved to squash these rumours, as the involvement of a designated hostile state in a foreign war would have much larger consequences.

But new findings from Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne this week have revealed almost two dozen North Korean soldiers have fled their ranks and are now running free.

The desertion has ignited a frantic search by Kremlin forces to locate them.

North Koreans are generally barred from ever leaving their hermit kingdom, which imposes strict martial law against even the slightest signs of dissent. Part of the clampdown is to suppress information of the outside world so that civilians will never be enticed by the progress and freedom of the developed world.

On the rare occasion that civilians are allowed to travel, authorities remain on high alert because the possibility of one doing a runner is high.

But amid the blasts and confusion, it appears a small unit of conscripts saw their chance and bolted.

It appears a small unit of North Korean conscripts saw their chance and bolted.

The desertion has ignited a frantic search by Kremlin forces to locate them.

‘The first step to a world war’

The soldiers were stationed in the Kursk and Bryansk oblasts, approximately four miles from Ukraine’s border, when they fled their posts, according to Suspilne.

Ukrainian intelligence officials claim the Russian military is working to track down the deserters, while commanders rush to hide the incident from higher authorities.

This comes amid reports that Moscow had plans to form a battalion of North Korean soldiers to bolster Russian efforts in pushing back Ukraine’s forces from the strategically significant Kursk region.

Ukrainian outlet LIGA recently revealed that the North Korean troops were set to be integrated into a “special Buryat battalion,” named after the Mongolic ethnic group from Siberia, Mongolia, and northern China.

The Kremlin immediately moved to squash rumours North Korea was getting involved, as the involvement of a designated hostile state in a foreign war would have much larger consequences.

The soldiers were expected to participate in combat operations across Ukraine’s southwestern regions, where fighting continues.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has gravely warned that the inclusion of North Korea in Russia’s plan to annex Ukraine was “the first step to a world war”, claiming that Iran was also backing Russia with “drones and missiles”.

Zelensky also revealed he had intelligence reports that North Korea was training 10,000 soldiers specifically to support Russia.

“They are preparing on their land, 10,000 soldiers, but they didn’t move them already to Ukraine or to Russia,” Zelensky said after meeting NATO defence ministers.

Speaking alongside NATO chief Mark Rutte, Zelensky said there were already an unspecified number of “tactical personnel” and “officers” from North Korea in “occupied” Ukrainian territory held by Russia.

Mr Rutte said that the alliance had “no evidence that North Korean soldiers are involved in the fight, but we do know that North Korea is supporting Russia”.

Kim Jong Un has ramped up the rhetoric in recent months, as tension with South Korea deteriorate to another low point.

Putin and Kim’s ‘comprehensive pact’

Vladimir Putin made his first visit to North Korea in 24 years earlier this year, signing a “comprehensive strategic partnership pact” with Kim Jong Un.

The agreement bears a striking resemblance to NATO’s Article 5, stating that if either country is subject to armed aggression, the other will provide military and other forms of support.

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun has suggested the deployment of North Korean troops to aid Russia was “highly likely”, warning western allies of the broader implications of a partnership between two hostile nuclear powers.

He also confirmed reports of North Korean casualties, as Ukrainian intelligence indicated six North Korean officers were killed in action near Donetsk on October 3.

Three more officers were injured and transported to Moscow for medical treatment, according to Russian Telegram channel Kremlin Snuffbox.

Vladimir Putin made his first visit to North Korea in 24 years earlier this year, signing a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership pact’ with Kim Jong Un.

Ukraine’s military intelligence previously reported the arrival of North Korean personnel in Russian-occupied Donetsk last year, including engineering teams.

In September 2023, the Center of National Resistance —a n entity established by Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces — reported that Putin had persuaded Kim to send North Korean workers to Russian-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk for construction work.

North Korea’s backing of Russia has been pivotal throughout the ongoing war, which began when Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Western intelligence agencies, including the United States, have accused North Korea of supplying artillery to Russia, accusations both Moscow and Pyongyang have denied.

Originally published as ‘The first step to a world war’: Group of North Korean soldiers sent to Russia immediately flee the frontlines