- Ukraine has been releasing excerpts of what its forces say is a North Korean soldier’s diary.
- They include a stick-figure sketch of using a comrade as “bait” to shoot down a drone.
- Other entries include musings on class struggles and a confession for stealing undisclosed Russian items.
Excerpts from a North Korean soldier’s diary released by Ukraine show a glimpse at how Pyongyang’s troops in Russia believed they could defend against drones and artillery strikes.
Ukraine’s special forces have been releasing excerpts of the diary since Christmas week, saying the entries were written by a now-deceased North Korean private named Gyeong Hong Jong.
The latest of these, published on Thursday, appeared to feature the young soldier confessing that he was stealing items from his Russian allies to sell. He did not specify what the stolen goods were but wrote that he had been caught.
“While working in the barracks, I thought that no one was watching me and put the Russians’ things in my pocket,” the diary excerpt said, per Ukraine’s special forces.
“I will no longer trade in other people’s things. I will heroically advance in the forefront and destroy the enemy,” the soldier added.
Other entries released by Ukraine included praises of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and musings on class struggle.
“Longing for my homeland, having left the warm embrace of my dear father and mother here on Russian land. I celebrate the birthday of my closest comrade Song Ji Myong,” another entry read, per a translation by The Wall Street Journal.
One of the earliest entries, published by Ukraine on December 26, featured a stick-figure drawing of what the soldier described as “How to eliminate a drone.”
The simple illustration showed a figure standing upright on open ground while another two stick figures fired at a quadcopter drone.
“If a UAV is spotted, gather in groups of three,” the diary read, per The Journal’s translation. “One person must act as bait to lure the drone while the other two take aim and neutralize it with precision shooting. The bait must maintain a distance of seven meters from the drone. The other two should prepare to shoot down the drone from a distance of 10 to 12 meters. When the bait stands still, the drone will stop and it can be shot down.”
Ukraine’s special forces said the North Korean soldier also wrote of how to avoid artillery strikes. An excerpt of his diary said that Pyongyang’s troops were supposed to “disperse in small groups” if fired upon by artillery.
The excerpt also said he could hide in the location of “the previous hit” because he believed artillery doesn’t repeatedly strike the exact same spot.
Business Insider couldn’t independently verify the authenticity of the diary entries. Ukraine posted photos of what it said were the soldier’s corpse and passport. The Journal also cited a former North Korean soldier and a former South Korean major general who said the choice of words in the diary aligned with the ideology and vernacular of North Korea’s troops.
The soldier’s diary could give insight into how North Korean forces are adapting battlefield doctrine for combat in Russia.
The West worries that Pyongyang’s involvement will allow its forces to glean valuable lessons from battling Ukraine, especially as they face off against American and European equipment and encounter drone warfare.
Dorothy Camille Shea, the deputy US ambassador to the UN, said on Wednesday that Pyongyang “is significantly benefiting from receiving Russian military equipment, technology, and experience, rendering it more capable of waging war against its neighbors.”
Western and South Korean intelligence says that 12,000 North Korean troops are stationed and fighting in Kursk, a Russian border region that Ukraine attacked in the summer of 2024.
Moscow hasn’t addressed the presence of Pyongyang’s troops on its soil, but Ukraine has increasingly been trying to cast a spotlight on North Korea’s direct involvement in the war.
Most recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy published images of who he said were two captured North Korean soldiers. He did not provide evidence that they were North Korean, though Seoul’s intelligence service backed up his claim.
“This was not an easy task: Russian forces and other North Korean military personnel usually execute their wounded to erase any evidence of North Korea’s involvement in the war against Ukraine,” Zelenskyy wrote. He has said that around 3,000 North Korean soldiers were wounded or killed.
Anadolu via Getty Images
Thousands of North Korean troops serve as a valuable source of manpower for Russia, which is relying on mass infantry assaults along the front lines to whittle down Ukraine’s defenses.
Still, Pyongyang’s reinforcements are still few compared to the over 600,000 people that Ukraine and the West believe Moscow has lost.
Russia is believed to be providing Kim with much-needed finances, economic support, food, and technology in exchange for the latter’s troops.
