On Sunday, it was confirmed that North Korea, which is ramping up the development of cutting-edge weapons suitable for modern warfare such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) after deploying its troops to Russia, is also applying combat-tested experiences to train its special forces in new tactics.
According to the North Korean Workers’ Party’s newspaper Rodong Sinmun on April 5, Kim Jong Un, General Secretary of the Workers’ Party, visited a training base for North Korean People’s Army special operations units on April 4 to oversee comprehensive exercises.
Photos released by the newspaper show special forces operatives maneuvering through open terrain with limited cover, while snipers in Ghillie Suits practice concealment techniques in the bushes.
The infiltration and ambush drills utilizing Ghillie Suits for enhanced concealment seem to have been designed to mitigate the risk of drone detection. North Korea seems to be replicating battlefield conditions similar to the Kursk region along the Ukraine-Russia border, where its deployed forces gained real-world combat experience, and incorporating these lessons into military training.
Reports indicate that in the early stages of deployment, North Korean troops suffered significant casualties from Ukrainian drone strikes while attempting to advance across snow-covered open terrain in Kursk. This training represents North Korea’s adaptation to counter such drone threats.
Rodong Sinmun stated that these exercises aim to continuously explore, apply, and master new tactics and methodologies for strengthening special operations forces in line with the evolving patterns and trends of modern warfare.
North Korea recently showcased the strike capabilities of its suicide drones and claimed to have begun mass production of these systems. On March 25 and 26, Kim observed strike tests of AI-equipped suicide drones and inspected an unmanned reconnaissance drone resembling the U.S. RQ-4 Global Hawk.
During the visit, Kim emphasized that unmanned systems and AI technology should be prioritized in military modernization efforts, directing the enhancement of drone capabilities.
This approach is also a response to the modern war experience of using drones for both offensive and reconnaissance operations. North Korea is swiftly integrating combat lessons into its new military strategies and tactics to bolster its contemporary warfare capabilities.
While the Kursk battlefield differs from the Korean Peninsula in terrain and operational context, North Korea is expected to develop new asymmetric tactics based on its combat experience, potentially influencing future invasion strategies against South Korea.
Since declaring South Korea as a hostile state last year, North Korea has conducted exercises simulating infiltration along the DMZ, seizure of South Korean facilities, artillery barrages on Seoul, and tank unit advances. These drills emphasize tactics focused on surprise attacks and capturing strongholds.
Additionally, there is speculation that North Korea may deploy its battle-hardened troops to other regions, potentially using future deployments as a means of generating foreign currency. It is believed that North Korea has secured promises of advanced military technology transfers and various forms of economic assistance from Russia in exchange for its recent weapons support and large-scale troop deployment.
