North Korean troops are launching “human wave” attacks against entrenched Ukrainian positions in the Kursk region in Russia, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday.
The North Korean soldiers have suffered more than 1,000 casualties in the past week alone, Mr. Kirby told reporters. Those North Korean assaults are part of Russia’s broader campaign to cripple Kyiv’s power grid as frigid winter weather sets in.
But Mr. Kirby said that the North Koreans’ tactics haven’t had much impact so far.
“These human wave tactics that we’re seeing haven’t really been all that effective,” he said. “It’s clear that Russian and North Korean military leaders are treating these troops as expendable and are ordering them on hopeless assaults against Ukrainian defenses.”
The North Korean soldiers appear to be “highly indoctrinated” and continue to press their attacks against Ukrainian fighting positions even when the outcome seems hopeless for them, Mr. Kirby said.
“We also have reports of North Korean soldiers taking their own lives rather than surrendering to Ukrainian forces, likely out of a fear of reprisal against their families in North Korea in the event they’re captured,” he said.
On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy said some 3,000 North Korean troops had been killed or wounded since late October, when Pyongyang deployed its first contingent of military personnel to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“Why the Koreans should fight for [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is a question that no normal person on Earth can answer,” Mr. Zelenskyy said on his Telegram social messaging page. “Unfortunately, the world is doing almost nothing to counter the criminal collaboration between Russia and North Korea.”
The Kremlin’s plan to transfer sophisticated military technology to North Korea in exchange for about 12,000 combat soldiers is a sign Russia poses a threat to all nations, Mr. Zelenskyy said.
“You realize that the words of those who call on Russia not to expand the war and not to aggravate the situation are not worth much,” he said. “Moscow does not understand words but it must feel strength.”
The U.S. has provided Ukraine with more than $61 billion in military assistance since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. On Friday, Mr. Kirby said the outgoing Biden administration will send Kyiv another security package in the next few days.
“We’re going to stay absolutely committed to making sure that we are bolstering Ukrainian air defense capabilities as well as other capabilities, of course,” Mr. Kirby said.
On Thursday, Mr. Putin said he is open to a Slovakian proposal to host peace talks that could lead to an end to the conflict with Ukraine. But Mr. Kirby called the Russian leader’s comments “pretty vacuous” because he has previously shown no interest in a negotiated settlement.
“Ukraine has got to be center stage when it comes to any kind of negotiation. Any other nation that wants to get involved in helping a negotiated settlement in this war needs to be in complete lockstep with President Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people,” Mr. Kirby said. “He gets to determine if and when he’s ready to negotiate. He gets to determine the circumstances and the conditions under which he would do that.”
President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to quickly end the Russia-Ukraine war after taking office.
