Russia’s Desperation Unveiled: The Fiasco of North Korean Troops on the Frontlines

6 min readJan 31, 2025

Russia’s latest debacle, withdrawing North Korean troops after their catastrophic losses, is a damning emblem of its imperial collapse and strategic incompetence. Once projecting itself as a global superpower, Moscow has devolved into a desperate scavenger, relying on one of the world’s most isolated and backward regimes to plug the gaping holes in its failing war effort. The withdrawal of these troops is not just a tactical failure but an indictment of Russia’s moral and strategic bankruptcy.

1. A Laughable Display of Desperation

Russia, the “great power,” now scrapes the bottom of the geopolitical barrel, enlisting poorly trained North Korean troops as cannon fodder. This is the same Russia that once boasted of its military might, now reduced to begging for help from a pariah state notorious for starving its own people. If this is the Kremlin’s idea of a “masterstroke,” then it’s no wonder their campaign in Ukraine has been one long, humiliating disaster.

Scrambling for Warm Bodies: Moscow’s inability to field competent soldiers from its own population speaks volumes about the crumbling state of its military infrastructure. The world’s second-largest army has been reduced to deploying soldiers who are barely more than expendable pawns.
North Korean “Assistance”: Only a regime as deluded as Putin’s would think that throwing undertrained, malnourished North Korean soldiers into modern mechanized warfare could be a winning strategy. The outcome? Predictable slaughter.

2. Strategic Idiocy on Full Display

The deployment of North Korean troops reveals more than just desperation — it reveals incompetence on an operatic scale. Russia’s decision to field forces with outdated tactics, minimal training, and no ability to integrate with modern warfare underscores just how far its military has fallen.

Illogical Alliances: Russia aligning with North Korea is less a sign of strategic brilliance and more a testament to the Kremlin’s inability to secure reliable allies. No serious global power would resort to alliances with regimes that can barely sustain themselves.
Tactical Suicide: Reports of these North Korean troops suffering “heavy losses” are hardly surprising. They were likely thrown into the frontlines with no regard for their survival, used as nothing more than human shields in a conflict Putin is determined to drag out, no matter the cost.

3. Human Exploitation as a Russian Trademark

Russia’s use of North Korean troops highlights a grim hallmark of its war effort: a total disregard for human life. Russian conscripts, Wagner mercenaries, and now foreign soldiers are treated as disposable commodities, sacrificed to prolong a losing campaign.

Exporting Suffering: North Korean soldiers, already victims of their own regime’s abuses, are now fodder for Putin’s imperial ambitions. For Moscow, their lives are nothing more than numbers on a casualty report.
Cynical Calculations: Russia’s exploitation of vulnerable allies like North Korea mirrors its treatment of its own people, using coercion and propaganda to justify endless bloodshed. The Kremlin’s message is clear: no one, not even its so-called friends, is safe from its disregard.

4. A Monument to Failure

This fiasco is not just a military setback — it is a neon sign flashing Russia’s impotence to the world. Far from intimidating its adversaries, Russia has made itself a global laughingstock.

The Myth of Russian Power: If anyone still clings to the illusion of Russia as a great power, this farce should disabuse them of that notion. Great powers don’t beg for help from countries like North Korea; they don’t sacrifice foreign troops because their own ranks are depleted.
Shattered Credibility: By relying on North Korea, Russia has irreparably damaged its reputation as a credible military force. This is no longer the Russia of the Cold War; this is a stumbling, self-destructive shadow of its former self.

5. The West Should Take Note

Russia’s desperation should embolden Ukraine and its allies to push harder. The fact that Moscow is scraping together foreign troops to shore up its positions is evidence that the Kremlin is running out of options.

Opportunities for Ukraine: The withdrawal of these ill-fated North Korean troops leaves a gap in Russia’s defenses, a gap Ukraine can and should exploit with renewed vigor.
Western Resolve: Russia’s missteps show that its war effort is not just faltering — it is failing spectacularly. Now is the time for the West to tighten the noose, providing Ukraine with the resources to deliver the knockout blow.

6. A Glimpse of the Endgame

Russia’s use and subsequent withdrawal of North Korean troops is a microcosm of its broader trajectory: a country drowning in its own hubris, dragging anyone it can down with it. This latest embarrassment doesn’t just expose Moscow’s weaknesses — it foreshadows its ultimate downfall.

Putin’s empire is a rotting carcass dressed up as a bear, stumbling from one humiliating blunder to the next. The only question left is how long it will take for the stench of failure to drive away even the few allies it has left.

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