Intelligence sources say a battalion of 3,000 has been secretly training to fight against Ukraine

A battalion of 3,000 North Korean soldiers will shortly join Russian troops in fighting Ukraine, marking Pyongyang’s full entry into the war.

Intelligence sources said the unit has been secretly training in Russia’s Far East ahead of deployment as part of a Russian airborne regiment.

“They are called the Buryat Battalion,” a senior Ukrainian military source told Politico. Buryatia is a remote region of Russia bordering Mongolia that the Kremlin has targeted heavily for military recruitment.

The Kyiv Independent quoted another Western intelligence source claiming that North Korea had sent 10,000 soldiers to join the Russian army.

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  • cecinestpasunbot@lemmy.mlEnglish
    1·
    17 days ago

    This is something new but I’m still pretty skeptical and I think rightly so. Photos and videos posted to telegram aren’t always what people claim they are. I also haven’t seen any new media willing to say whether or not these videos show what they purport to show. I’d add that it’s also entirely possible for North Korean troops to enter Russia as part of some joint training exercises. However, they may not be intended for deployment in Ukraine.

    I’d also be interested to know why the US or NATO do not seem to want to validate any of these claims at this time.

    • realitista@lemm.eeEnglish
      1·
      17 days ago

      For me seems pretty par for the course in war. Some stuff happens, you get a report from someone who saw it, you get a video, then some more official accounts. That’s how a lot of things happen. If you want to use a very high burden of proof then you will have to wait a while to know what’s going on.

      • cecinestpasunbot@lemmy.mlEnglish
        1·
        17 days ago

        If you want to use a very high burden of proof then you will have to wait a while to know what’s going on.

        I agree but I also think that a high burden of proof should be the standard for political topics especially armed conflict. If this was a youtube video about a pig saving a goat from drowning I wouldn’t really care if people chose to believe in it or not.