Russia plans to deploy additional North Korean forces, missiles, artillery systems and multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) in the Kursk region to support long-range operations, News.bg reports.
The head of the Ukrainian Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR), Lieutenant General Kirill Budanov, told The War Zone in an article published on January 22 that North Korea will send an additional, as yet unspecified number of soldiers to the Kursk region in the future.
This is stated in an analysis of the fighting in Ukraine published by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
From November 2024 North Korea has provided Russia with about 120 M-1989 Koksan 170 mm self-propelled artillery systems and 120 M-1991 240 mm MLRS rocket systems.
At least 120 more of each system are expected to be delivered in the future. The GUR reported in November that Pyongyang had already shipped about 100 of these weapons.
Budanov added that North Korea plans to deliver 150 additional KN-23 short-range ballistic missiles in 2025. In 2024, 148 KN-23 missiles had already been shipped. He noted that North Korean soldiers operating in the Kursk region typically use equipment provided by North Korea and train Russian forces on how to use those systems.
A senior U.S. defense official told the New York Times that more North Korean forces are expected to arrive in Russia by mid-March 2025.
Russia's Economic Struggles
The Kremlin appears increasingly concerned about the country's economic instability. Reuters, citing five sources, reported on January 23 that Russian President Vladimir Putin is increasingly concerned about the "distortions" in the economy caused by the war in Ukraine.
Certain circles in the Russian elite see an end to the war as a key step toward addressing economic problems. Putin reportedly acknowledges the strain the conflict is putting on the Russian economy, but believes he has already achieved some key military goals, including connecting occupied Crimea with captured territories in southern Ukraine and weakening the Ukrainian army.
Speculation about a possible end to the conflict has not been confirmed.
ISW noted that the Kremlin has undertaken an information operation that attempts to create the false impression that the Russian economy is stable, despite multiple indicators of serious macroeconomic problems.
War crimes
Russian forces recently executed at least six unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war in the Donetsk region. On January 23, Ukrainian sources released footage showing Russian soldiers shooting prisoners in an unspecified area of Ukraine.
Ukrainian Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lyubinets and the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine said reports of these actions were being investigated.
ISW continues to maintain its position that Russian military commanders either participate in or condone such executions.