Despite their elite status, North Korea's "Storm" troops were ill-prepared for the war, South Korea's National Intelligence Service said.

For years, North Korea’s military has helped its leader, Kim Jong-un, keep control of his people and provide a buffer against the country’s sworn enemy, South Korea. With 1.3 million members, the North’s army is among the world’s largest conventional armed forces.

South Korea's military has said that North Korea is preparing to continue aiding Russia in its war with Ukraine, despite casualties.

North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia were given fake military documents with Russian names and birthplaces, the Ukrainian military said, amid claims from Kyiv that Russia is trying to conceal the presence of foreign fighters on the battlefield.

In Trump-led armistice talks, the Hermit Kingdom may want a seat at the table.

"Through various sources of information and intelligence, we assess that North Korean troops who have recently engaged in combat with Ukrainian forces have suffered around 1,100 casualties," the JCS said in a statement.

South Korea's military said on Monday it has detected signs of North Korea preparing to send more troops and weapons, including suicide drones, to Russia to support its war against Ukraine.

For Russia, facing growing international sanctions, these networks have become a lifeline, and one of its key suppliers is North Korea, according to Ziare. Also read Russian Documentary Accidentally Exposes Its Own War Crimes According to Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD),

North Korea demonstrated this year that it could produce ballistic missiles and supply them to Russia for use against Ukraine in a matter of months

According to the US and South Korea, North Korea has deployed more than 10,000 troops to help Russia fight the war against Ukraine, with Pyongyang also reportedly shipping more than 10,000 containers of artillery rounds, anti-tank rockets, mechanised howitzers and rocket launchers to Russia.

Jonah Leff said that the researchers from his group examined remnants of four North Korean missiles recovered in Ukraine in July and August. One of them had marks showing it was procured in 2024, according to the researcher.