North Korean troops have returned to the Kursk front line in western Russia, engaging in new foot assault tactics while targeting Ukrainian vehicles with Bulsae-4 mobile missile launchers, according to a news report published Friday.
“The military contingent of the Korean People’s Army has returned to the operational zone,” the Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies (CDS) said, per the Forbes report.
Reports indicate that North Korea’s 11th Army Corps, widely known as the “Storm Corps,” which deployed 12,000 soldiers, lost nearly one-third of its forces before temporarily withdrawing in late January or early February.
Previously, North Korean troops have launched foot attacks in company-sized formations of 100 to 200 soldiers, the CDS said. However, the nation has switched to deploying smaller, platoon-sized assault groups of around 50 troops.
Military analysts suggest that this tactical shift helps North Korean forces evade Ukrainian drone detection and reduces mass casualties.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine has been employing cluster munitions to push back Russian and North Korean forces in Russia’s Kursk region, according to Forbes. These munitions scatter up to 88 grenade-sized submunitions, allowing them to effectively neutralize infantry over a broad area.
According to Army TV, the official Ukrainian military channel, Ukrainian forces — including the 47th Mechanized Brigade — routinely fire cluster munitions at large enemy concentrations, followed by high-explosive shells to eliminate survivors.
North Korean troops have suffered significant losses, with Ukraine’s drone strikes and cluster munitions being primary contributors.
New footage from Russian channels suggests that North Korean Bulsae-4 missile vehicles are currently active in Kursk.
Ukrainian forces first identified the six-wheeled, eight-missile Bulsae-4 near the Kursk front in August 2023. Four months later, Ukrainian troops successfully destroyed the first Bulsae-4 missile vehicle.
However, surviving Bulsae-4s have continued engaging Ukrainian targets, with recent strikes reportedly hitting a potential Ukrainian fighting position and an armored vehicle.
BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]
